Rehabilitation engineering in the assistive technology industry

This chapter provides a framework for the assistive technology (AT) industry, as well as a context for the role of rehabilitation engineering (RE) within the AT industry. Rehabilitation engineers who plan to apply their professional skills within the AT industry must accept that role as more entrepreneurial and dynamic than the more structured roles in clinical, educational or government settings. In order to describe the role of rehabilitation engineers within the AT industry, it is first necessary to define the AT industry. The balance of this chapter summarizes such information as it exists, explains why the information is as comprehensive as found in other industries and provides some assessment of the AT industry’s current status and future directions. Most AT companies do not appear under any NAICS code whatsoever, and there is little expectation that they will be a category under wholesale or retail products and services without a concerted effort from within the AT industry.