He is also the director of undergraduate studies for the department of bioengineering and the director of the Neural Engineering Vision Laboratory at UIC, and chief science officer of RetMap, Inc. At UIC, Hetling developed the first undergraduate course track in neural engineering, and in 2008, he and his students authored a widely accepted definition[1] of the field.
Hetling is an expert on the electrophysiology of vision, with accomplishments in retinal prosthesis and electrical stimulation therapy for retinal disease, leading to invited book chapters in leading Neural Engineering textbooks[2][3] and earning the Excellence in Neural Engineering Award early in his academic career.
He developed the enabling technology behind multi-electrode electroretinography (meERG), with two issued US patents,[6] both under commercial license.
He also developed the enabling technology behind peripheral pattern electroretinography (ppERG), with two international patents pending.
Hetling also co-developed the first odor-detection system capable of identifying airborne odors in real time,[7] and has patents pending for developing technologies related to clinical electrophysiology and therapeutic hypothermia.