Clinical experimental research on adaptive robot-aided therapy control methods for upper-limb rehabilitation

Robotica ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 32 (7) ◽  
pp. 1081-1100 ◽  
Author(s):  
Guozheng Xu ◽  
Aiguo Song ◽  
Lizheng Pan ◽  
Xiang Gao ◽  
Zhiwei Liang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Muscle Strength ◽  
Upper Limb ◽  
Position Control ◽  
Control Strategies ◽  
Therapy Control ◽  
Upper Limb Rehabilitation ◽  
Robotic Therapy ◽  
Impaired Limb ◽  
Limb Rehabilitation ◽  
Progressive Resistance

SUMMARYThis study presents novel robotic therapy control algorithms for upper-limb rehabilitation, using newly developed passive and progressive resistance therapy modes. A fuzzy-logic based proportional-integral-derivative (PID) position control strategy, integrating a patient's biomechanical feedback into the control loop, is proposed for passive movements. This allows the robot to smoothly stretch the impaired limb through increasingly rigorous training trajectories. A fuzzy adaptive impedance force controller is addressed in the progressive resistance muscle strength training and the adaptive resistive force is generated according to the impaired limb's muscle strength recovery level, characterized by the online estimated impaired limb's bio-damping and bio-stiffness. The proposed methods are verified with a custom constructed therapeutic robot system featuring a Barrett WAM™ compliant manipulator. Twenty-four recruited stroke subjects were randomly allocated in experimental and control groups and enrolled in a 20-week rehabilitation training program. Preliminary results show that the proposed therapy control strategies can not only improve the impaired limb's joint range of motion but also enhance its muscle strength.

CONTROL OF FOREARM MODULE IN UPPER-LIMB REHABILITATION ROBOT FOR REDUCTION AND BIOMECHANICAL ASSESSMENT OF PRONATOR HYPERTONIA OF STROKE PATIENTS

2016 ◽  
Vol 16 (02) ◽  
pp. 1650008 ◽  
Author(s):  
PIN-CHENG KUNG ◽  
CHOU-CHING K. LIN ◽  
SHU-MIN CHEN ◽  
MING-SHAUNG JU
Keyword(s):  
Upper Limb ◽  
Position Control ◽  
Biomechanical Properties ◽  
Torque Control ◽  
Rehabilitation Robot ◽  
Stroke Patients ◽  
Upper Limb Rehabilitation ◽  
Biomechanical Assessment ◽  
Custom Made ◽  
Limb Rehabilitation

Spastic hypertonia causes loss of range of motion (ROM) and contractures in patients with post-stroke hemiparesis. The pronation/supination of the forearm is an essential functional movement in daily activities. We developed a special module for a shoulder-elbow rehabilitation robot for the reduction and biomechanical assessment of pronator/supinator hypertonia of the forearm. The module consisted of a rotational drum driven by an AC servo motor and equipped with an encoder and a custom-made torque sensor. By properly switching the control algorithm between position control and torque control, a hybrid controller able to mimic a therapist’s manual stretching movements was designed. Nine stroke patients were recruited to validate the functions of the module. The results showed that the affected forearms had significant increases in the ROM after five cycles of stretching. Both the passive ROM and the average stiffness were highly correlated to the spasticity of the forearm flexor muscles as measured using the Modified Ashworth Scale (MAS). With the custom-made module and controller, this upper-limb rehabilitation robot may be able to aid physical therapists to reduce hypertonia and quantify biomechanical properties of the muscles for forearm rotation in stroke patients.

scholarly journals System Framework of Robotics in Upper Limb Rehabilitation on Poststroke Motor Recovery

2018 ◽  
Vol 2018 ◽  
pp. 1-14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kai Zhang ◽  
Xiaofeng Chen ◽  
Fei Liu ◽  
Haili Tang ◽  
Jing Wang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Upper Limb ◽  
Mechanical Design ◽  
Control Strategies ◽  
Functional Mobility ◽  
Current Status ◽  
Clinical Effects ◽  
Repetitive Movement ◽  
Upper Limb Rehabilitation ◽  
Rehabilitation Robots ◽  
Limb Rehabilitation

Neurological impairments such as stroke cause damage to the functional mobility of survivors and affect their ability to perform activities of daily living. Recently, robotic treatment for upper limb stroke rehabilitation has received significant attention because it can provide high-intensity and repetitive movement therapy. In this review, the current status of upper limb rehabilitation robots is explored. Firstly, an overview of mechanical design of robotics for upper-limb rehabilitation and clinical effects of part robots are provided. Then, the comparisons of human-machine interactions, control strategies, driving modes, and training modes are described. Finally, the development and the possible future directions of the upper limb rehabilitation robot are discussed.

Planar Robotic Systems for Upper-Limb Post-Stroke Rehabilitation

2008 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giulio Rosati ◽  
Riccardo Secoli ◽  
Damiano Zanotto ◽  
Aldo Rossi ◽  
Giovanni Boschetti
Keyword(s):  
Upper Limb ◽  
Leading Edge ◽  
Robotic Systems ◽  
Robot Arm ◽  
Chronic Patients ◽  
Upper Limb Rehabilitation ◽  
Post Stroke ◽  
Robotic Therapy ◽  
Robotic Devices ◽  
Limb Rehabilitation

Rehabilitation is the only way to promote recovery of lost function in post-stroke hemiplegic subjects, leading to independence and early reintegration into social and domestic life. In particular, upper limb rehabilitation is fundamental to regain ability in Activities of Daily Living (ADLs). Robot-aided rehabilitation is an emerging field seeking to employ leading-edge robotic systems to increase patient recovery in the rehabilitation treatment. Even though the effectiveness of robotic therapy is still being discussed, the use of robotic devices can increase therapists’ efficiency by alleviating the labor-intensive aspects of physical rehabilitation, and can produce a reduction in treatment costs. This paper presents a comparison between different planar robotic devices designed for upper-limb rehabilitation in chronic patients. A planar configuration of the workspace leads to straightforward mechanical and control system design, and allows to define very simple and understandable treatment exercises. Also, the graphical user interface becomes very intuitive for the patient, and a set of Cartesian-based measures of the patient’s performance can be defined easily. In the paper, SCARA (Selective Compliance Assembly Robot Arm) robots such as the MIT-Manus, Cartesian robots and cable-driven robots are considered and compared in terms of inertial properties and force exertion capabilities. Two cable-driven devices, designed at the Robotics Lab of the Department if Innovation In Mechanics and Management, University of Padua, Italy, are presented for the first time. The first robot employs four driven cables to produce a planar force on the end-effector, whereas the second one is based on a three-cable configuration plus a linear actuator to obtain better overall robot performance.

scholarly journals Review on Patient-Cooperative Control Strategies for Upper-Limb Rehabilitation Exoskeletons

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stefano Dalla Gasperina ◽  
Loris Roveda ◽  
Alessandra Pedrocchi ◽  
Francesco Braghin ◽  
Marta Gandolla
Keyword(s):  
Upper Limb ◽  
Cooperative Control ◽  
Control Strategies ◽  
Human Robot Interaction ◽  
Level Control ◽  
Rehabilitation Treatment ◽  
Upper Limb Rehabilitation ◽  
High Level ◽  
Limb Rehabilitation ◽  
Training Modalities

Technology-supported rehabilitation therapy for neurological patients has gained increasing interest since the last decades. The literature agrees that the goal of robots should be to induce motor plasticity in subjects undergoing rehabilitation treatment by providing the patients with repetitive, intensive, and task-oriented treatment. As a key element, robot controllers should adapt to patients’ status and recovery stage. Thus, the design of effective training modalities and their hardware implementation play a crucial role in robot-assisted rehabilitation and strongly influence the treatment outcome. The objective of this paper is to provide a multi-disciplinary vision of patient-cooperative control strategies for upper-limb rehabilitation exoskeletons to help researchers bridge the gap between human motor control aspects, desired rehabilitation training modalities, and their hardware implementations. To this aim, we propose a three-level classification based on 1) “high-level” training modalities, 2) “low-level” control strategies, and 3) “hardware-level” implementation. Then, we provide examples of literature upper-limb exoskeletons to show how the three levels of implementation have been combined to obtain a given high-level behavior, which is specifically designed to promote motor relearning during the rehabilitation treatment. Finally, we emphasize the need for the development of compliant control strategies, based on the collaboration between the exoskeleton and the wearer, we report the key findings to promote the desired physical human-robot interaction for neurorehabilitation, and we provide insights and suggestions for future works.

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