scholarly journals Back-Support Exoskeleton Control Strategy for Pulling Activities: Design and Preliminary Evaluation

Designs ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (3) ◽  
pp. 39
Author(s):  
Maria Lazzaroni ◽  
Tommaso Poliero ◽  
Matteo Sposito ◽  
Stefano Toxiri ◽  
Darwin G. Caldwell ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Control Strategy ◽  
Muscle Activity ◽  
Material Handling ◽  
Ease Of Use ◽  
Biomechanical Analysis ◽  
Perceived Support ◽  
Preliminary Evaluation ◽  
Subjective Measurements ◽  
Spinal Muscles ◽  
Forearm Muscle

The execution of manual material handling activities in the workplace exposes workers to large lumbar loads that increase the risk of musculoskeletal disorders and low back pain. In particular, the redesign of the workplace is making the execution of pulling activities more common, as an alternative to lifting and carrying tasks. The biomechanical analysis of the task revealed a substantial activation of the spinal muscles. This suggests that the user may benefit from the assistance of a back-support exoskeleton that reduces the spinal muscle activity and their contribution to lumbar compression. This work addresses this challenge by exploiting the versatility of an active back-support exoskeleton. A control strategy was specifically designed for assisting pulling that modulates the assistive torques using the forearm muscle activity. These torques are expected to adapt to the user’s assistance needs and the pulled object mass, as forearm muscle activity is considered an indicator of grip strength. We devised laboratory experiments to assess the feasibility and effectiveness of the proposed strategy. We found that, for the majority of the subjects, back muscle activity reductions were associated with the exoskeleton use. Furthermore, subjective measurements reveal advantages in terms of perceived support, comfort, ease of use, and intuitiveness.

scholarly journals Biomechanical analysis of an unpowered hip flexion orthosis on individuals with and without multiple sclerosis

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ross M. Neuman ◽  
Staci M. Shearin ◽  
Karen J. McCain ◽  
Nicholas P. Fey
Keyword(s):  
Multiple Sclerosis ◽  
Muscle Activity ◽  
Healthy Subjects ◽  
Muscle Activation ◽  
Assistive Technologies ◽  
Lower Limbs ◽  
Biomechanical Analysis ◽  
Foot Drop ◽  
Plantar Flexors ◽  
Hip Flexion

Abstract Background Gait impairment is a common complication of multiple sclerosis (MS). Gait limitations such as limited hip flexion, foot drop, and knee hyperextension often require external devices like crutches, canes, and orthoses. The effects of mobility-assistive technologies (MATs) prescribed to people with MS are not well understood, and current devices do not cater to the specific needs of these individuals. To address this, a passive unilateral hip flexion-assisting orthosis (HFO) was developed that uses resistance bands spanning the hip joint to redirect energy in the gait cycle. The purpose of this study was to investigate the short-term effects of the HFO on gait mechanics and muscle activation for people with and without MS. We hypothesized that (1) hip flexion would increase in the limb wearing the device, and (2) that muscle activity would increase in hip extensors, and decrease in hip flexors and plantar flexors. Methods Five healthy subjects and five subjects with MS walked for minute-long sessions with the device using three different levels of band stiffness. We analyzed peak hip flexion and extension angles, lower limb joint work, and muscle activity in eight muscles on the lower limbs and trunk. Single-subjects analysis was used due to inter-subject variability. Results For subjects with MS, the HFO caused an increase in peak hip flexion angle and a decrease in peak hip extension angle, confirming our first hypothesis. Healthy subjects showed less pronounced kinematic changes when using the device. Power generated at the hip was increased in most subjects while using the HFO. The second hypothesis was not confirmed, as muscle activity showed inconsistent results, however several subjects demonstrated increased hip extensor and trunk muscle activity with the HFO. Conclusions This exploratory study showed that the HFO was well-tolerated by healthy subjects and subjects with MS, and that it promoted more normative kinematics at the hip for those with MS. Future studies with longer exposure to the HFO and personalized assistance parameters are needed to understand the efficacy of the HFO for mobility assistance and rehabilitation for people with MS.

scholarly journals Implementing Visual Analytics Pipelines with Simulation Data

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Taimur Khan ◽  
Syed Samad Shakeel ◽  
Afzal Gul ◽  
Hamza Masud ◽  
Achim Ebert
Keyword(s):  
Visual Analytics ◽  
Visual Analysis ◽  
Simulated Data ◽  
Evaluation Study ◽  
Ease Of Use ◽  
Preliminary Evaluation ◽  
Simulation Data ◽  
Visual Data Analytics ◽  
High Level ◽  
Simulation Parameters

Visual analytics has been widely studied in the past decade both in academia and industry to improve data exploration, minimize the overall cost, and improve data analysis. In this chapter, we explore the idea of visual analytics in the context of simulation data. This would then provide us with the capability to not only explore our data visually but also to apply machine learning models in order to answer high-level questions with respect to scheduling, choosing optimal simulation parameters, finding correlations, etc. More specifically, we examine state-of-the-art tools to be able to perform these above-mentioned tasks. Further, to test and validate our methodology we followed the human-centered design process to build a prototype tool called ViDAS (Visual Data Analytics of Simulated Data). Our preliminary evaluation study illustrates the intuitiveness and ease-of-use of our approach with regards to visual analysis of simulated data.

Biomechanical analysis of manual material handling movement in healthy weight and obese workers

2019 ◽  
Vol 74 ◽  
pp. 124-133 ◽  
Author(s):  
Philippe Corbeil ◽  
André Plamondon ◽  
Grant Handrigan ◽  
Jasmin Vallée-Marcotte ◽  
Simon Laurendeau ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Material Handling ◽  
Biomechanical Analysis ◽  
Healthy Weight ◽  
Manual Material Handling

The Influence of Load Handling Height on Shoulder Biomechanics during Sudden Loading

2018 ◽  
Vol 62 (1) ◽  
pp. 828-832
Author(s):  
Hossein Motabar ◽  
Saman Madinei ◽  
Xiaopeng Ning
Keyword(s):  
Muscle Activity ◽  
Material Handling ◽  
Travel Distance ◽  
Body Parts ◽  
Occupational Risk Factors ◽  
Shoulder Muscles ◽  
Proprioceptive Deficit ◽  
Shoulder Disorders ◽  
Sudden Loading ◽  
Load Handling

Shoulder disorders have been reported as the most severe musculoskeletal disorders among all body parts. Multiple occupational risk factors such as manual material handling, repetitive motion, overexertion, fatigue, and overhead tasks have been reported to be associated with the development of shoulder disorders. The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of height (low, middle, high) on shoulder muscles during sudden loading. Kinematics and Electromyography (EMG) was recorded from 14 male participants. Effect of height found to be significant on normalized EMG and load travel distance. Bilateral shoulder muscles indicated higher NEMG with the increase of the load’s altitude. This increase of muscle activity could have resulted from the greater potential energy of the load at higher altitudes which required extra muscle activity to maintain the biomechanical stability of the shoulder. Reduced stability of shoulder at higher altitudes caused proprioceptive deficit which resulted in higher load travel distance.

New Telerehabilitation Services for the Elderly

2013 ◽  
pp. 109-132 ◽  
Author(s):  
António Teixeira ◽  
Carlos Pereira ◽  
Miguel Oliveira e Silva ◽  
Joaquim Alvarelhão ◽  
Anabela G. Silva ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Older People ◽  
User Interfaces ◽  
Multimodal Interaction ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Ease Of Use ◽  
Preliminary Evaluation ◽  
Age Group ◽  
Additional Information ◽  
Age Related ◽  
First Results

The world’s population is getting older with the percentage of people over 60 increasing more rapidly than any other age group. Telerehabilitation may help minimise the pressure this puts on the traditional healthcare system, but recent studies showed ease of use, usability, and accessibility as unsolved problems, especially for older people who may have little experience or confidence in using technology. Current migration towards multimodal interaction has benefits for seniors, allowing hearing and vision problems to be addressed by exploring redundancy and complementarity of modalities. This chapter presents and contextualizes work in progress in a new telerehabilitation service targeting the combined needs of the elderly to have professionally monitored exercises without leaving their homes with their need regarding interaction, directly related to age-related effects on, for example, vision, hearing, and cognitive capabilities. After a brief general overview of the service, additional information on its two supporting applications are presented, including information on user interfaces. First results from a preliminary evaluation are also included.

scholarly journals Manual material handling in the supermarket sector. Part 1: Joint angles and muscle activity of trapezius descendens and erector spinae longissimus

2021 ◽  
Vol 92 ◽  
pp. 103340
Author(s):  
Sebastian Skals ◽  
Rúni Bláfoss ◽  
Michael Skipper Andersen ◽  
Mark de Zee ◽  
Lars Louis Andersen
Keyword(s):  
Muscle Activity ◽  
Material Handling ◽  
Erector Spinae ◽  
Joint Angles ◽  
Manual Material Handling ◽  
Sector Part

scholarly journals Flexible submental sensor patch with remote monitoring controls for management of oropharyngeal swallowing disorders

2019 ◽  
Vol 5 (12) ◽  
pp. eaay3210 ◽  
Author(s):  
Min Ku Kim ◽  
Cagla Kantarcigil ◽  
Bongjoong Kim ◽  
Ratul Kumar Baruah ◽  
Shovan Maity ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Remote Monitoring ◽  
Muscle Activity ◽  
Treatment Compliance ◽  
Swallowing Disorders ◽  
Ease Of Use ◽  
Remote Monitoring System ◽  
Medical Centers ◽  
Healthy Control Participant ◽  
Healthy Control ◽  
Head Neck

Successful rehabilitation of oropharyngeal swallowing disorders (i.e., dysphagia) requires frequent performance of head/neck exercises that primarily rely on expensive biofeedback devices, often only available in large medical centers. This directly affects treatment compliance and outcomes, and highlights the need to develop a portable and inexpensive remote monitoring system for the telerehabilitation of dysphagia. Here, we present the development and preliminarily validation of a skin-mountable sensor patch that can fit on the curvature of the submental (under the chin) area noninvasively and provide simultaneous remote monitoring of muscle activity and laryngeal movement during swallowing tasks and maneuvers. This sensor patch incorporates an optimal design that allows for the accurate recording of submental muscle activity during swallowing and is characterized by ease of use, accessibility, reusability, and cost-effectiveness. Preliminary studies on a patient with Parkinson’s disease and dysphagia, and on a healthy control participant demonstrate the feasibility and effectiveness of this system.

The Effects of Gloves on Grip Strength and Muscle Activity

1988 ◽  
Vol 32 (11) ◽  
pp. 647-650 ◽  
Author(s):  
L.R. Sudhakar ◽  
R.W. Schoenmarklin ◽  
S.A. Lavender ◽  
W.S. Marras
Keyword(s):  
Grip Strength ◽  
Muscle Activity ◽  
Muscle Force ◽  
Force Measurement ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Selection For ◽  
Forearm Muscle

The focus of this research was to investigate how grip strength and forearm muscle force were affected by two types of gloves, rubber and leather. Grip strength was significantly less in the two gloved conditions than in a barehanded condition. However, EMG analysis of muscle activity revealed no significant difference in muscle activity across the gloved and barehanded conditions, indicating that subjects generated maximal exertions in all conditions. Therefore, a certain amount of muscle force is lost in the hand-glove interface while producing maximal grip forces in the gloved conditions. Internal muscle force measurement could thus be used to aid in glove selection for submaximal tasks in industry.

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