Assist-As-Needed Exoskeleton for Hand Joint Rehabilitation Based on Muscle Effort Detection

Abstract

Robotic-assisted systems have gained significant traction in post-stroke therapies to support rehabilitation, since these systems can provide high-intensity and high-frequency treatment while allowing accurate motion-control over the patient’s progress. In this paper, we tackle how to provide active support through a robotic-assisted exoskeleton by developing a novel closed-loop architecture that continually measures electromyographic signals (EMG), in order to adjust the assistance given by the exoskeleton. We used EMG signals acquired from four patients with post-stroke hand impairments for training machine learning models used to characterize muscle effort by classifying three muscular condition levels based on contraction strength, co-activation, and muscular activation measurements. The proposed closed-loop system takes into account the EMG muscle effort to modulate the exoskeleton velocity during the rehabilitation therapy. Experimental results indicate the maximum variation on velocity was 0.7 mm/s, while the proposed control system effectively modulated the movements of the exoskeleton based on the EMG readings, keeping a reference tracking error <5%.

Myoelectric Control Systems for Upper Limb Wearable Robotic Exoskeletons and Exosuits—A Systematic Review

“…Many papers have focused on the actions of the fingers or that of the wrist ( Table 2 ), within their robotic hand device. A hand exoskeleton can be activated simply through two independent DoFs, one for the thumb and one for the four fingers’ flexion/extension [ 65 ]. Alternatively, for grasping movement, the thumb can passively be fixed to its position [ 20 , 32 ].…”

“…The majority of studies that presented portable upper limb robots were based on hand exoskeletons [ 15 , 18 , 19 , 20 , 22 , 32 , 41 , 42 , 43 , 44 , 46 , 48 , 49 , 54 , 55 , 56 , 65 , 69 , 72 ]. There were also a number of studies that developed portable exoskeletons/exosuits to support elbow movement [ 17 , 23 , 27 , 31 , 38 , 39 , 45 , 52 , 57 , 58 , 59 , 60 , 61 , 64 ], or both hand and elbow motions [ 24 , 28 , 51 ].…”

Towards Modeling Human Motor Learning Dynamics in High-Dimensional Spaces

“…The HML model could potentially help in designing a bi-directional human-robot learning framework that would allow the adaptation of rehabilitation strategies to subjectspecific needs and requirements. Furthermore, robotic rehabilitation for high-dimensional motor systems has gained prominence [24], [25], [26], [27], [28], and we believe that the HML model developed in this paper can be used with such rehabilitation systems to enable bi-directional humanrobot interaction.…”

Augmented Humanity: A Systematic Mapping Review

“…However, recent scientific discoveries and inventions have demonstrated that technology is also beginning to modify human capabilities, pushing them beyond their natural limits [2][3][4]. With the advance of technology, the interaction between humans and machines has been "improved", "augmented" or even "redesigned" [5][6][7][8]. This has made it not only interesting and intriguing but also viable and arising as a serious concept of scientific research and development [9,10].…”