Technical Features and Functionalities of Myo Armband: An Overview on Related Literature and Advanced Applications of Myoelectric Armbands Mainly Focused on Arm Prostheses

Abstract

Technological advances in manufacturing smart high-performances electronic devices, increasingly available at lower costs, nowadays allow one to improve users' quality of life in many application fields. In this work, the human-machine interaction obtained by using a next generation device (Myo armband) is analyzed and discussed, with a particular focus to healthcare applications such as upper-limb prostheses. An overview on application fields of the Myo armband and on the latest research works related to its use in prosthetic applications is presented; subsequently, the technical features and functionalities of this device are examined. Myo armband is a wearable device provided with eight electromyographic electrodes, a 9-axes inertial measurement unit and a transmission module. It sends the data related to the detected signals, via Bluetooth Low Energy technology, to other electronic devices which process them and act accordingly, depending on how they are programmed (in order to drive actuators or perform other specific functions). Applied to the prosthetic field, Myo armband allows one to overcome many issues related to the existing prostheses, representing a complete electronic platform that detects in real-time the main signals related to forearm activity (muscles activation and forearm movements in the three-dimensional space) and sends these data to the connected devices. Nowadays, several typologies of prostheses are available on the market; they can be mainly distinguished into low-cost prostheses, which are light and compact but allow for a limited number of movements, and high-end prostheses, which are much more complex and featured by high dexterity, but also heavy, bulky, difficult to control and very expensive. Finally, the Myo armband is an optimum candidate for prosthetic application (and many others) and offers an excellent lowcost solution for obtaining a reliable, easy to use system.

Data Quality and Reliability Assessment of Wearable EMG and IMU Sensor for Construction Activity Recognition

“…The eight EMG sensors capture the electrical impulses generated by the forearm muscles, which are returned as an 8-bit array, in other words, each EMG sensor outputs an integer value between −128 and 127 representing muscle activation levels. The armband sensor captures the muscle activity of various forearm muscles such as the brachioradialis, flexor digitorum superficialis, medial epicondyle of humerus, palmaris longus, flexor carpi ulnaris, flexor carpi radialis, and pronator teres [ 35 ]. Whereas, the IMU unit captures the motion of the forearm by measuring acceleration, angular velocity, and orientation along the x, y, and z axes.…”

Analysis of Influence of Segmentation, Features, and Classification in sEMG Processing: A Case Study of Recognition of Brazilian Sign Language Alphabet

“…This device is widely used in gesture recognition research [ 46 , 47 ]. Myo TM has eight equidistant channels, with 200 samples/s, 8-bit resolution from ADC (Analog to Digital Converter), and wireless communication via Bluetooth [ 48 ]. Signal acquisition is made through dry stainless-steel electrodes and there is a 3-axis sensor unit with an accelerometer, gyroscope, and magnetometer.…”

A Classification and Calibration Procedure for Gesture Specific Home-Based Therapy Exercise in Young People With Cerebral Palsy

“…The system requires hardware: laptop (typically used machine specifications: 2.67GHz CPU, Intel Core i5-560M, Intel HD Graphics, 4GB RAM), electromyography (EMG) and inertial sensor (Myo Armband, sampling at 200 Hz and 50 Hz respectively [13]) and software: adapted commercial video game (Dashy Square) and custom controller to interpret movements and command the game (MATLAB 2017b). Briefly, the objective of the game is to avoid all obstacles while the character progresses across the level.…”