Dr Sue Cobb

Sue Cobb is a Principal Research Fellow of the University of Nottingham and Research Manager of the Virtual Reality Applications Research Team (VIRART). She obtained a degree in Psychology (Plymouth, 1985), an MSc in Human Factors (Birmingham, 1986) and a PhD in Human Factors Engineering (Nottingham, 1991). In 1992 she was one of the founding members of VIRART, established to explore and develop applications of virtual reality technology. Research interests include user-centred design, development and evaluation of virtual environments, virtual and mixed reality systems for education, healthcare and rehabilitation.

Sue has been Project Manager of Human Factors research on a number of multidisciplinary projects in these areas resulting in research and development of new technologies for: story creation and re-telling in primary schools (KidStory), Science Education in Secondary Schools (Virtual RadLab), Life Skills Education for learning Disabilities (Virtual Life Skills), Social Skills Training for children and adults with Asperger’s Syndrome (AS Interactive), Stroke Rehabilitation (VR-Stroke), and Treatment of Amblyopia (I-BiT).

Sue was amongst the first cohort of academic/research staff recruited to the Midlands Medici Technology Transfer Fellowship scheme (2002) and was involved in patent submission and co-ordination between Technology Transfer Offices at the University of Nottingham and the East Midlands NHS Innovations Hub to examine routes for exploitation and commercialisation of the I-BiT technology.

Dr Richard Eastgate

Richard has been working as an Experimental Officer for the University of Nottingham since 1988 and gained promotion to Senior Experimental Officer in 2001. He is a founder member of VIRART, the Virtual Reality Applications Research Team which was formed in 1991, and since then has been their Technical Manager. In this role he supervises the technical aspects of VIRART’s research and acts in an advisory capacity on student projects, as well as playing a direct role in a number of VIRART research projects. His particular interests are the uses of VR in the education, training, and healthcare domains and he has around 20 publications in these areas. He completed his PhD on “The Structured Development of Virtual Environments: Enhancing Functionality and Interactivity” in 2001. Apart from acting in a technical advisory role on all VIRART activities he is currently working on the following projects; Interactive Binocular Treatments (I-BiT), The Rail Research and Simulation Laboratory (Rail-RSL), Future_Workspaces, and Flightdeck and Air Traffic Control Collaboration Evaluation (FACE).

Mr Richard Gregson

BM Bch MA DPhil (Oxon) FRCS (ED) FRCOphth, Consultant Ophthalmologist and Directorate of Ophthalmology, Queen's Medical Centre, Nottingham, UK. Specialist area is paediatric strbismus with special interest in paediatric ophthalmology and strabismus.

 

 

 

Mr Ian Comaish

Ian Comaish studied pre-clinical medicine at Magdalene College, Cambridge, where he also found time to study History of Art to degree level. He then went on to study clinical medicine at Christ Church, Oxford. After junior medical jobs, at Stoke Mandeville and the Queen Elizabeth Military Hospital in Woolwich, he completed his Basic Surgical Training in Ophthalmology at the Royal United Hospital in Bath, and St.Thomas’ Hospital in London. He then completed Higher Surgical Training at the Royal Eye Infirmary in Plymouth and the Queens Medical Centre in Nottingham.

In 2001, Ian was Fellow in Corneal and Refractive Surgery at The Eye Institute, Sydney, Australia, where he worked with Michael Lawless, Chris Rogers and Gerard Sutton. Dr Lawless was at that time President of the International Society for Refractive Surgery. Ian also worked at the Sydney Eye Hospital with Dr Kathy MacLellan and at the Royal North Shore Hospital, Sydney.

In 2003, he completed a second postgraduate fellowship, in Oculoplastic and Orbital surgery at Nottingham Queens Medical Centre, before taking up a post as a Consultant Ophthalmologist in the NHS.

Ian has made a number of original contributions to the ophthalmic literature, particularly in refractive surgery, the effects of anti-epileptic medications on the eye, and new ways of treating visual disorders in children using virtual reality systems.

Mr Tom Butler

Tom Butler qualified in medicine at Leeds University. After junior medical posts in Yorkshire, he spent a year working in Neurology and Neurosurgery at Pinderfields Hopsital in Wakefield. He then completed his Ophthalmic Specialist Training in the Trent region, based at the Queen's Medical Centre, Nottingham. He also enjoyed pursuing basic science research with the Division of Visual Sciences, University of Nottingham, with several publications in the international literature.

Tom spent 2003 at the Sydney Eye Hospital, Australia as Fellow in Corneal Surgery, and Visiting Scholar at the Save Sight Institiute, University of Sydney, working with leading Australian corneal surgeons, and research scientists. He now lives in Norfolk with his family and two children, where he is Consultant Ophthalmologist at James Paget Hospital, Great Yarmouth, part of the University of East Anglia. He continues to enjoy special interests in Cataract, Cornea & External Eye Disease, as well as time spent cycling, walking and kayaking.

Nicola Herbison

Nicola is a qualified State Registered Orthoptist who graduated from the University of Liverpool in 1996.

She is based at the Queen’s Medical Centre, Nottingham. Her clinical role at the hospital includes providing an Orthoptic Service for Stroke patients and assessing patients pre and post-operatively from squint surgery. She also has a high input in teaching and mentoring both students and newly qualified staff.

She has been a member of the I-BiT team since 2003. She is responsible for recruitment of suitable patients and assessing patients post treatment and involved in the treatment process.