Ontario Tech says Oshawa researcher co-led CSA-funded Harmony medical pod prototype

Ontario Tech University says an Oshawa-based researcher, Dr. Carolyn McGregor, co-led a Canadian Space Agency-funded project with CGI that produced a prototype medical “health pod” called Harmony. In an April 6 university announcement, Ontario Tech also said McGregor leads a Canadian Space Agency-funded Space Health study on the International Space Station.

The projects described by the university centre on monitoring astronaut health and testing medical-care technology for longer-duration space missions.

McGregor and CGI co-led one of five teams awarded $2 million by the Canadian Space Agency to develop a Connected Care Medical Module (C2M2), Ontario Tech said.

The prototype is named Harmony.

Ontario Tech described Harmony as an AI-driven medical pod intended for longer-duration lunar missions such as Artemis.

McGregor also leads a Canadian Space Agency-funded Space Health study on the International Space Station, Ontario Tech said.

The university said astronauts wear Canada’s Bio-Monitor smart garments before, during and after flight as part of that study.

Ontario Tech said an AI platform also named Artemis analyzes the data from the garments to monitor cardiovascular and other physiological changes in space. The university said the platform is also intended to improve health-care solutions on Earth, including in hospitals and other extreme environments.

Ontario Tech identified McGregor as its Research Chair in Artificial Intelligence for Health and Wellness.

Ontario Tech said she is a professor and dean in its Faculty of Business and Information Technology and director of the Joint Research Centre in AI for Health and Wellness.