Research Roadmap

Document ID RAL-RM-2026.09 · Version 2.0 · 13 September 2026

This page supersedes the prior four-step staging and splits scientific phases from instrument horizons.

A measurement, on this page, is a repeatable mechanical observable with known units, bandwidth, and interrogation depth, and a prospective map into shear modulus G, viscosity η, or frequency-dependent wave speed c(f) and attenuation α(f). It is not a smaller sensor.

Specification of record: Kim (2026),DOI 10.5281/zenodo.22149318. Where this page and the specification differ, the specification governs.

“Mechanical restriction” is a hypothesis-level latent construct, not a measured scalar.

Rex Autistikon Research Foundation, Inc. (operating as Rex Autistikōn Labs) is a 501(c)(3) public charity · 509(a)(2) · EIN 42-3220323. It is not a clinic. It does not diagnose, treat, or license an individual-level score. Partner institutions own human-subjects compliance.

Principles

Frequency content — the observable must resolve the bandwidth of the hypothesized mechanical filter, not only a single quasi-static reading.
Depth match — interrogation depth must match the anatomical interface named in the zone dossier.
Anisotropy — fiber-aligned tissues are not treated as isotropic by default; orientation is recorded.
Operator independence — hand-circling is not a wavenumber; pose, aperture, and scan path are logged.
Concordance path — candidate instruments on the same zone are compared before any composite is formed.
F1–F3 falsification — reliability failure (F1), construct failure (F2), and predictive failure (F3) remain the exit conditions.

Three-layer instrument architecture

Instruments are specified as access, readout, and inverse. This is an instrument stack, not the scientific stack of measurement → representation → transmission. No post-hoc restriction ratio r is computed from these layers.

Access

How energy is delivered to the named interface (actuator, acoustic drive, optical launch, or indentation).

Readout

How motion or strain is recorded (tracking array, optical coherence tomography, shear-wave imaging, coil, or hydrophone).

Inverse

How recorded motion is mapped, prospectively, into G, η, or c(f) and α(f).

Carbon-nanotube–silicone (CNT–silicone) is a readout-layer strain array around a known actuator, not a source of G.
Lasers launch or listen only.
Circular geometry means a fixed annular aperture or a motorized scan with logged pose.

Scientific phases

These five phases replace the former four-step staging. Intervention is not a default next step. The interactive model stays didactic until empirical mechanical inputs replace illustrative sliders.

Phase I — Measurement competence

Active / expanding

For each zone: define the anatomical target, candidate mechanical observables, acquisition method, calibration and quality control, expected ranges, and a test–retest plan. Record explicitly what is not measurable for that zone.

Zone dossiers in progress for 2, 4, and 6, with later work on 1 and 8 as instruments allow
Shear-wave elastography protocol development for zone 6
Collaborator search for optical-coherence-tomography vibrometry at zone 2

Phase II — Mechanical representation

Planning

Specify how raw measurements map to a common analytical representation (parameters, units, transforms). Assess reliability and, where multiple measures exist, concordance. A transform document is required before any multi-zone composite.

III

Phase III — Transmission predictions

Conditional on II

Apply the computational layer to representations from Phase II. Predictions are outputs, not inputs. Model version identifiers are retained with each run. This phase does not open until Phase II is specified.

Phase IV — Physiological tests

Future

Preregister whether measured mechanical state (and any prospectively defined composite) predicts independent physiological outcomes. Studies run under partner institutional review boards. Partner institutions remain responsible for human-subjects compliance.

Phase V — Intervention-linked studies

Only if warranted

Only if earlier phases support mechanistic relevance under preregistered criteria. Designs must be able to fail if effects are absent. Targeted fascial interventions in well-characterized cohorts are not a planned default.

Instrument horizons

Horizon A (0–3 years)

ID	Instrument	Target
A1	Multi-frequency shear-wave elastography (SWE)	Zones 6, 4, later 8
A2	Optical-coherence-tomography (OCT) vibrometry + wideband immittance	Zone 2
A3	Strain elastography of extraocular muscle + orbital MRI geometry	Zone 1
A4	Wireless mechano-acoustic wave (MAW) patch	Zone 6
A5	Fiber-optic micro-indentation (partner cadaver / intra-operative)	Calibration
A6	CNT–silicone strain annulus as receiver only	Surface sites of zones 4 and 6

Deliverable. Zone dossiers for 2, 4, and 6; phantom concordance; no new latent score.

Horizon B (3–7 years)

B1 Stretchable ultrasound + SWE
B2 Custom-driver orbital magnetic resonance elastography (MRE)
B3 Endoscopic / ostoscopic optical coherence elastography (OCE)
B4 Photoacoustic shear-wave launch
B5 Instrumented palpation
B6 Gated diaphragm / pelvic MRE

Horizon C (8–15+ years)

C1 Brillouin + OCE on mucosa / globe (longitudinal modulus is not Young’s modulus)
C2 Clearable magnetomotive reporters, not permanent CNT dust
C3 Nitrogen-vacancy nanodiamond as bench calibration, not a zone scanner
C4 Intra-luminal torsional shear probes
C5 Acoustoelastic / prestress imaging
C6 Temporary submucosal micro-electromechanical systems via surgical partners only — the Foundation does not own an implant programme
C7 Driver-free 7T MRE
C8 Closed-loop mechanical spectroscopy protocol

Zone path

Zone	Horizon A now	Worth waiting for	Explicitly not this
1 Extraocular / orbital	Strain elastography + MRI pulleys	Custom-driver orbital MRE; conjunctival OCE / Brillouin; acoustoelastic gaze	Lid skin patch as orbital fascia
2 Middle ear	OCT vibrometry + immittance	Endoscopic OCE; tensor-tympani load test	Cervical strain as middle-ear mechanics
3 Nasal	Mucosal indentation / OCT pilot	Slim nasal OCE; Brillouin of mucosa	Acoustic rhinometry as a modulus
4 Tongue / floor of mouth	Intraoral SWE or indentation	Wearable ultrasound + intraoral OCE	Untracked surface EMG as stiffness
5 Pharyngeal / laryngeal	Functional partners only, not modular G	Distal rotary OCE; ultra-slim SWE endoscope	Voice quality as tissue modulus
6 Suboccipital	SWE + MAW patch; CNT array as receiver	Stretchable ultrasound; multi-frequency cervical MRE	Manual orbit without pose
7 Visceral fascia / diaphragm	Breath-gated SWE or MRE at costal margin	Dynamic MRE; wearable ultrasound with respiratory inverse	Abdominal skin strain as diaphragmatic viscosity
8 Pelvic floor	Endocavitary SWE at partner clinics	Stretchable perineal ultrasound; gated pelvic MRE	Foundation-run internal device programme

24-month workplan

Year 1

Zone dossiers for 2, 4, and 6
SWE protocol for zone 6
OCT-vibrometry collaborator for zone 2
CNT annulus only as A6 (receiver, not a source of G)
Do not ingest didactic sliders as data

Year 2

Phantom concordance of SWE vs MAW vs indentation
Phase II transform document before any multi-zone composite
Open Horizon B talks for stretchable ultrasound and orbital MRE
Update this page if F1 fails

The precise measurement is multi-frequency wave propagation through a geometrically identified interface. Every material and laser is only a way to launch or listen to that wave.

This roadmap is provisional and will be updated as results and collaborations develop. All primary outputs will continue to be released under open-access principles whenever possible.