News – VEMI Lab

Expanded Situational Awareness Without Vision: A Novel Haptic Interface for Use in Fully Autonomous Vehicles Publication

Thu, 16 Mar 2023 14:55:15 +0000

VEMI graduate student Paul Fink was published first author for his work “Expanded Situational Awareness Without Vision: A Novel Haptic Interface for Use in Fully Autonomous Vehicles” with VEMI staff Dr. Nicholas Giudice, Dr. Richard Corey, and RJ Perry. The abstract states that “this work presents a novel ultrasonic haptic interface to improve nonvisual perception and situational awareness in applications such as fully autonomous vehicles.” Read the full paper here:

Student Publication: Whole Body Vibration Detection in an Autonomous Vehicle Simulator

Thu, 16 Mar 2023 14:49:13 +0000

VEMI students Ainslie Allen, Anthony Caccese, and Anna Johnson studied whole body vibration detection in an autonomous vehicle simulator during VEMI’s Rapid Research week of 2022. The published paper can be found here: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/368302445_Whole_Body_Vibration_Detection_in_an_Autonomous_Vehicle_Simulator

Student Publication: Influence of Music on Emotion in Autonomous Vehicles

Thu, 16 Mar 2023 14:47:30 +0000

VEMI students Emily Hanscom and Maher Alsamsam studied the influence of music on emotion in autonomous vehicles during VEMI’s Rapid Research week of 2022. The published paper can be found here: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/368301784_Influence_of_Music_on_Emotion_in_Autonomous_Vehicles?channel=doi&linkId=63e134abc465a873a299e76a&showFulltext=true

Dr. Giudice discusses assistive technology

eblackwood — Mon, 05 Dec 2022 15:26:31 +0000

Nick joins a panel of orientation and mobility experts to discuss his perspectives on the effective design, development, and use of assistive technology. Panelist described pros and cons of current practices and ideas for future tech development, research, and instruction. URL:

Dr. Giudice in 2022 BRAINS Fellows Symposium

Thu, 15 Sep 2022 13:58:07 +0000

Dr. Giudice recently participated as an invited senior mentor in the 2022 BRAINS Fellows Symposium in Seattle WA. BRAINS (Broadening the Representation of Academic Investigators in NeuroScience) is an annual program that invites promising early career under-represented researchers across neuroscience to a multi-day symposium, held at an island retreat on Bainbridge Island off the coast of Seattle. The goal is for research fellows to interact with senior mentors on targeted activities, panels, and engagements to promote success in academic careers. “This was my first time participating in the BRAINS community but it was an amazing experience,” Nick said about his participation. “It is wonderful to be able to share my experiences and provide support to the next generation of leaders in the field.”

For more on BRAINS, see:

VEMI in the News- a Media Post by the University of Maine

Thu, 28 Jul 2022 13:13:33 +0000

With VEMI’s 3rd place win in the Inclusive Design Challenge, put on by the U.S. DOT, the lab has been hitting the news! 91�� media team writes an article describing VEMI’s win and some of the news centers that have reported on it. Read more, here: University of Maine News

Media features VEMI Lab’s federal prize for self-driving car software

Wiredfocus highlights VEMI and the U.S. DOT Inclusive Design Challenge

Thu, 28 Jul 2022 13:10:39 +0000

VEMI placed 3rd in the national competition held by the U.S. DOT to innovate on increasing accessibility in the upcoming technology of autonomous vehicles. For this competition, named the Inclusive Design Challenge, VEMI developed AVA, the Autonomous Vehicle Assistant; a software that gives the user end-to-end assistance on their rideshare- from ordering it all the way to exiting the vehicle at the destination. For more information about the team’s work, visit the article, here:

Zip-Education posts about VEMI’s Inclusive Design Challenge Win

Thu, 28 Jul 2022 13:05:31 +0000

VEMI placed third in the U.S. DOT Inclusive Design challenge, winning $300,000 with their software, AVA. AVA stands for the Autonomous Vehicle Assistant, and allows the user end-to-end assistance in using a rideshare with an autonomous vehicle. Interviews by University of Maine’s President Joan Ferrini-Mundy and VEMI co-founders Dr. Nicholas Giudice and Dr. Richard Corey are included. To read the article, click here:

News Center Maine Covers VEMI in the U.S. DOT Inclusive Design Challenge

Thu, 28 Jul 2022 12:58:00 +0000

News Center Maine featured VEMI in an article and News piece entitled “Umaine researchers create software that will make rideshare inclusive”. Here, they explain how AVA, VEMI’s Autonomous Vehicle Assistant software, can help those who are blind or visually impaired use an autonomous vehicle. The article also discusses VEMI’s 3rd place win in the U.S. DOT Inclusive Design Challenge. For more information, see the article here:

Bangor Daily News on VEMI’s Inclusive Design Challenge Win

Thu, 28 Jul 2022 12:53:21 +0000

VEMI was featured in Bangor Daily News on July 27th, 2022. The article discusses the lab’s work for the U.S. DOT’s Inclusive Design Challenge, involving AVA, the Autonomous Vehicle Assistant. Learn more about AVA and the Inclusive Design Challenge here: Bangor Daily News- VEMI