Dr. Victoria Wumi Oguntosin

Covenant University

Spring 2024

Dr. Victoria Wumi Oguntosin is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Electrical and Information Engineering at Covenant University, Ota. An MIT-ETT Fellow, she is a pioneer in the emerging field of Soft Robotics and Rehabilitation Engineering in West Africa. Her research focuses on designing compliant, wearable robotic devices that can assist patients recovering from strokes or other motor impairments. Her technical work is highly specialized in Pneumatic Artificial Muscles (PAMs). Unlike traditional rigid robots, she designs “soft actuators” using silicone and fabric that mimic the natural movement of human muscles. One of her notable projects involved the development of a wearable elbow exoskeleton controlled by Eye-Tracking technology, allowing paralyzed patients to trigger robotic movement simply by looking at a control interface. Dr. Oguntosin holds a Ph.D. in Cybernetics and Soft Robotics from the University of Reading, UK (2019). Her doctoral research on “Wearable Assistive Soft Robotic Devices” has been published in high-impact journals like Frontiers in Neuroscience. She combines this hardware expertise with software development, having built “Hebron,” an AI-powered chatbot designed to streamline e-commerce and student services on the Covenant University campus. As a participant in the MIT-ETT program, she is actively working to introduce Biomedical Robotics into the standard electrical engineering curriculum. She advocates for “Human-Centered Design,” teaching her students that the ultimate goal of engineering is to improve the quality of human life, particularly for the elderly and disabled.