Evaluation of a Multifunctional Hand Prosthesis System Using EMG Controlled Animation

In this communication, we present an on-line real-time simulation system used to evaluate a new method of controlling a multifunctional hand prosthesis. The system employs two computers. Acquisition, analysis, and classification of EMG signals are performed by a minicomputer, and the animation model of the hand prosthesis which is displayed on a monitor TV is controlled by a microcomputer. From three EMG signals picked up from the most suitable muscles of the forearm, three amplitude and three frequency components are derived. Six voluntary movements are then classified by the use of a pattern recognition technique based on the linear discriminant analysis method. Besides the six basic motions, the model can also make eight combined motions using the method of selecting control signals. The experimental results tested on healthy adults indicated that recognition rate was above 90 percent, and nearly 100 percent in some of the better cases. Then the subjects could easily operate the model on the TV screen.