ONELabOccupational Neuromechanics
& Ergonomics
Menu

News & Highlights

Awards, events, student success, research impact, media, and other highlights from ONE Lab.

Lab NewsStudent Success

ONE Lab members reconnect at the World Congress of Biomechanics

Current and former members of ONE Lab recently reconnected at the World Congress of Biomechanics in Vancouver.

One of the most rewarding parts of attending major research meetings is catching up with former lab members, hearing about their new careers and research directions, and bringing past and present students together. The informal gathering offered a welcome opportunity to celebrate the growing ONE Lab community and the many paths its graduates are taking in research and professional practice.

AwardsResearch Impact

Nick La Delfa receives the 2026 Young Investigator Award

Dr. Nick La Delfa received the 2026 Young Investigator Award presented through the Applied Ergonomics Conference and the Texas A&M Center for Worker Health.

The award recognizes outstanding applied-research contributions by an early-career faculty member. It reflects ONE Lab’s work in occupational biomechanics, physical ergonomics, proactive work assessment, and the prevention of work-related musculoskeletal injuries.

Student SuccessAwards

Michael Watterworth receives the 2026 Student of the Year Award

ONE Lab PhD student Michael Watterworth received the 2026 Student of the Year Award at the Applied Ergonomics Conference.

Michael’s research examines overhead-work exposure, fatigue thresholds, and upper-limb exoskeletons. His work combines experimental measurement and ergonomics modelling to improve how overhead work and assistive technologies are evaluated.

Talks & EventsResearch Impact

ONE Lab presents new virtual-reality and workplace-measurement research

ONE Lab researchers shared new work at the 2026 Applied Ergonomics Conference in Arlington, Texas.

Presentations examined the use of controllers and wearable gloves in virtual-reality ergonomics assessments, along with the reliability, calibration, and continuing challenges involved in measuring exertion durations from workplace video. Together, these projects reflect the lab’s focus on validating emerging technologies and improving the evidence used in proactive task assessment.

Lab NewsResearch Impact

CFI and Ontario Research Fund investment expands ONE Lab research capabilities

New infrastructure support from the Canada Foundation for Innovation and the Ontario Research Fund is expanding ONE Lab’s capacity for advanced laboratory, virtual, and workplace research.

The investment will strengthen the lab’s capabilities in wireless electromyography, wearable and markerless motion capture, hand and finger tracking, eye tracking, virtual reality, force measurement, and synchronized multimodal assessment. It will also support the development of a Mobile ONE Lab, enabling high-fidelity physical-exposure research in real occupational environments while permanent laboratory studies continue in parallel. These new capabilities will help ONE Lab connect fundamental biomechanics and neuromuscular research with proactive workplace assessment and real-world musculoskeletal-injury prevention.

Media & OutreachResearch Impact

Ontario Tech highlights ONE Lab’s virtual-reality ergonomics research

Ontario Tech University featured Dr. Nick La Delfa and ONE Lab’s research using virtual reality, digital human modelling, and real-time motion capture to support safer and more productive workplace design.

The article and accompanying video highlight the lab’s publicly announced collaboration with General Motors and Dr. Joel Cort and explain how simulated work can be evaluated before a physical workplace or production process is fully implemented.

View original source (opens in a new tab)

AwardsResearch Impact

Virtual-reality ergonomics research receives the Tom Waters Award

ONE Lab research on real-time body tracking in virtual-reality ergonomics assessments received the 2024 Tom Waters Award for Best Manual Materials Handling Presentation at the Applied Ergonomics Conference.

The work examined how body-tracking technology influences the ergonomics information produced during virtual work simulation. It forms part of the lab’s broader effort to establish when emerging digital tools provide accurate and useful information for proactive workplace design.