Post-Doctoral Research Visit F/M Modeling the neuromechanics of human sensorimotor control

Le descriptif de l'offre ci-dessous est en Anglais

Type de contrat : CDD

Contrat renouvelable : Oui

Niveau de diplôme exigé : Thèse ou équivalent

Fonction : Post-Doctorant

Niveau d'expérience souhaité : De 3 à 5 ans

A propos du centre ou de la direction fonctionnelle

The Inria Saclay-Île-de-France Research Centre was established in 2008. It has developed as part of the Saclay site in partnership with Paris-Saclay University and with the Institut Polytechnique de Paris .

The centre has 40 project teams , 27 of which operate jointly with Paris-Saclay University and the Institut Polytechnique de Paris; Its activities occupy over 600 people, scientists and research and innovation support staff, including 44 different nationalities.

Contexte et atouts du poste

The position is within the Collaborative Research in Computational Neuroscience (CRCNS) project co-funded by the ANR and the NSF, which brings together an interdisciplinary team across Université Paris-Saclay (France; PI: Bastien Berret) and University of Delaware (US; PIs: Fabrizio Sergi & Joshua Cashaback).

The project aims at better understanding the control of force, mechanical impedance (via co-contraction of antagonist muscles), and feedback responses (via delayed/noisy sensory information) using computational models.

The position is located at Université Paris-Saclay (France) in the group of Prof. Bastien Berret (within CIAMS laboratory and BOOST Inria team led by Taous Meriem Laleg). The lab generally focuses on human motor control with applications to sports and health and the postdoc's group is especially interested in human-robot interaction.

We invite applications for a two-year postdoctoral position (1-year extension possible)

Mission confiée

Assignments :

With the help of the supervisor, the recruited person will develop computationally efficient methods to perform predictive simulations of human neuromechanical control (Julia language is preferred). They will propose extensions and improvements of the mathematical framework. Current tested methods involve stochastic optimal open-loop control approaches developed in [1-2] and tested or extended in [3-5]. They will eventually focus on integrating state-of-the-art muscle models in the simulations in collaboration with the partners. The candidate may also conduct experiments on human participants using various robotic interfaces and measurement techniques to test some predictions of the models, in close collaboration with other PhD/postdoc students from the lab.

For a better knowledge of the proposed research subject :

[1] Berret, B., & Jean, F Efficient computation of optimal open-loop controls for stochastic systems. Automatica, 115,

[2] Leparoux, C., Bonalli, R., Hérissé, B., & Jean, F Statistical linearization for robust motion planning. Systems & Control Letters, 189,

[3] Berret, B., Verdel, D., Burdet, E., & Jean, F Co-contraction embodies uncertainty: An optimal feedforward strategy for robust motor control. PLOS Computational Biology, 20(11), e

[4] Berret, B., & Jean, F Stochastic optimal open-loop control as a theory of force and impedance planning via muscle co-contraction. PLOS Computational Biology, 16(2), e

[5] Berret, B., Conessa, A., Schweighofer, N., & Burdet, E Stochastic optimal feedforward-feedback control determines timing and variability of arm movements with or without vision. PLOS Computational Biology, 17(6), e

Collaboration :

Besides collaborations with the partners at University of Delaware, collaborations will be possible within the BOOST Inria team (Meriem Laleg), with ENSTA Paris (Frederic Jean), with Imperial College London (Etienne Burdet).

Travel :

• Potential travel is foreseen to meet colleagues at University of Delaware and present at conferences. Travel expenses are covered within the limits of the project.

Principales activités

Main activities:

• Develop efficient programs for predictive simulations of human neuromechanics
• Propose solutions for improving the mathematical framework
• Present the works' progress to partners
• Write and publish scientific papers
• Communicate results at conferences

Additional activities:

• Supervise students

Compétences

Technical skills and level required : Strong programming skills are needed for this project. Prior knowledge related to nonlinear optimization, stochastic optimization, stochastic/ordinary differential equations will be appreciated

Languages : English

Relational skills : Team worker (verbal communication, active listening, proactivity, motivation and commitment).

Other valued appreciated : Good level of spoken and written English

Avantages

• Subsidized meals
• Partial reimbursement of public transport costs
• Leave: 7 weeks of annual leave + 10 extra days off due to RTT (statutory reduction in working hours) + possibility of exceptional leave (sick children, moving home, etc.)
• Possibility of teleworking (after 6 months of employment) and flexible organization of working hours
• Professional equipment available (videoconferencing, loan of computer equipment, etc.)
• Social, cultural and sports events and activities
• Access to vocational training
• Social security coverage

Rémunération

€2,788 gross per month

Informations générales

• Thème/Domaine : Modélisation et commande pour le vivant
• Ville : Orsay
• Centre Inria : Centre Inria de Saclay
• Date de prise de fonction souhaitée :
• Durée de contrat : 2 ans
• Date limite pour postuler :

Attention: Les candidatures doivent être déposées en ligne sur le site Inria. Le traitement des candidatures adressées par d'autres canaux n'est pas garanti.

Consignes pour postuler

Sécurité défense :

Ce poste est susceptible d'être affecté dans une zone à régime restrictif (ZRR), telle que définie dans le décret n° relatif à la protection du potentiel scientifique et technique de la nation (PPST). L'autorisation d'accès à une zone est délivrée par le chef d'établissement, après avis ministériel favorable, tel que défini dans l'arrêté du 03 juillet 2012, relatif à la PPST. Un avis ministériel défavorable pour un poste affecté dans une ZRR aurait pour conséquence l'annulation du recrutement.

Politique de recrutement :

Dans le cadre de sa politique diversité, tous les postes Inria sont accessibles aux personnes en situation de handicap.

Contacts

• Équipe Inria : BOOST
• Recruteur :

Berret Bastien /

L'essentiel pour réussir

We are looking for a highly motivated researcher with the following qualifications:

• Background in automatic control, robotics, computer sciences, numerical optimization, optimal control, or similar
• Interest in human movement, biomechanics, neuroscience, human-robot interaction or sports
• Effective programming skills (in Julia, Python, or Matlab)
• Teamwork, communication and writing abilities

The applicant should be curious about applying their knowledge to advance fundamental research questions aiming to decipher the neural control of movement in humans from a computational perspective.

A propos d'Inria

Inria est l'institut national de recherche dédié aux sciences et technologies du numérique. Il emploie 2600 personnes. Ses 215 équipes-projets agiles, en général communes avec des partenaires académiques, impliquent plus de 3900 scientifiques pour relever les défis du numérique, souvent à l'interface d'autres disciplines. L'institut fait appel à de nombreux talents dans plus d'une quarantaine de métiers différents. 900 personnels d'appui à la recherche et à l'innovation contribuent à faire émerger et grandir des projets scientifiques ou entrepreneuriaux qui impactent le monde. Inria travaille avec de nombreuses entreprises et a accompagné la création de plus de 200 start-up. L'institut s'efforce ainsi de répondre aux enjeux de la transformation numérique de la science, de la société et de l'économie.

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