Ka Lun Tam always loved building things. As a young boy, he would collect toilet paper rolls and create miniature robots out of them together with twist ties, straws and cardboard boxes.
Now, as a senior research engineer in the Bloorview Research Institute’s PRISM Lab, Tam has turned his childhood fascination with building small robots to working alongside top scientists, trainees and students on impactful research innovations that have opened new ways for children and youth with disabilities and developmental differences to connect with the world around them.
The engineer has collaborated with countless summer students and interns as well as close to 30 research trainees in the lab led by Dr. Tom Chau over the years on impactful assistive technology research studies such as the Hummingbird, SwitchApp and brain computer interface technology, as well as in research related to gait and walking dynamics.
Prior to joining Dr. Chau’s PRISM Lab fulltime in 2007, he developed hundreds of devices and communication aids for Interfaces, a former clinical program at Holland Bloorview, for about 10 years to support clients with their communication needs.
Tam tells us what sparks joy for him in his career at Holland Bloorview spanning more than two decades, first as a volunteer before joining full time in 1999.
Tell me a bit about your journey to Holland Bloorview.
I’m an engineer by background and took a biomedical option. So, I already had that medical/rehab mindset in place. I volunteered for a few summers during my third and fourth year in university at the organization, then part-time before eventually joining full time in 1999.
At that time, I joined a clinical program called Interfaces, which built electronic devices as well as communications and writing aids for people with disabilities. I stayed with that team for about 10 years before I started transitioning to the BRI with Tom and his PRISM research lab team in 2007.
What do you do in the BRI?
My role is to support researchers and trainees so I get to dabble in a lot of different people’s projects. Tom has a lot of graduate students coming in each year. They would come to me if they needed any hardware support such as interfacing two pieces of equipment together. I also do some coding or provide customized software support if needed. It’s a lot of customization work for researchers and trainees so they can use the device in their research studies.
What do you love about your job?
I love puzzles so I see my job almost like solving puzzles for the PRISM lab team and coming up with creative solutions. What makes me the happiest is hitting that nirvana moment. It’s exciting to build something that works, then handing it off to researchers so they can use it in their studies. When the research study comes out a few years later, I can look back with pride and say that I had a hand in that.
What are the projects are you most proud of?
I enjoyed working with research teams on assistive technology devices such as the Hummer (a prototype of what has now been developed into the Hummingbird™) and BCIs (brain computer interfaces). These devices have made a transformational impact on the way kids and youth with disabilities can interact with their world and express their thoughts and feelings independently. I’m so grateful to have been a part of these impactful research projects.
What are your hobbies outside of work?
I enjoy playing bridge and most recently curling. Board games like Settlers of Catan are also fun because it’s all about strategy and problem solving, something I enjoy doing outside of work as well. I love games wherever I have to problem solve.
What has kept you at Holland Bloorview all these years?
I continually get new challenges so it’s never the same thing. Every graduate student comes in with an idea and a slightly different project. And each project comes with its own questions. I love the variety, and variety is what keeps me excited about my role.
*This interview has been edited for length and brevity.
