HandCARE: A Cable-Actuated Rehabilitation System to Train Hand Function After Stroke

 What happened to this and does it work? Why doesn't your doctor know this off the top of their head? Finger recovery is incredibly important to survivors, if your doctor incompetently doesn't know the answer you don't have a functioning stroke doctor. 14 years is long enough for an incompetent doctor to get up to speed.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                

2008, IEEE Transactions on Neural Systems and Rehabilitation Engineering

 Ludovic Dovat (1)
 ,
Olivier Lambercy (1)
 ,
 Roger Gassert (2)
 ,
Thomas Maeder (3), Ted Milner (4), Teo Chee Leong (1), and Etienne Burdet (2)
(1) Department of Mechanical Engineering, National University of Singapore, 119077 Singapore (2) Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, SW7 2AZ London, U.K. (3) Laboratory of Microengineering for Manufacturing, EPFL, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland (4) Department of Kinesiology and Physical Education, McGill University, Montreal, QC, H2W 1S4 Canada
Version of record
: IEEE Transactions on Neural Systems and Rehabilitation Engineering 16 (6), 582-591, 2008. http://hdl.handle.net/10.1109/TNSRE.2008.2010347

Abstract:

We have developed a robotic interface to train hand and finger function. HandCARE is a Cable-actuated rehabilitation system, in which each finger is attached to an instrumented cable loop allowing force control and a predominantly linear displacement. The device, whose designed is based on biomechanical measurements, can assist the subject in opening and closing movements and can be adapted to accommodate various hand shapes and finger sizes. Main features of the interface include a differential sensing system, and a clutch system which allows independent movement of the five fingers with only one actuator. The device is safe, easily transportable, and offers multiple training possibilities. This paper presents the biomechanical measurements carried out to determine the requirements for a finger rehabilitation device, and the design and characterization of the complete system.

Published in: IEEE Transactions on Neural Systems and Rehabilitation Engineering ( Volume: 16, Issue: 6, December 2008)