Development of a Robot-Assisted Rehabilitation Therapy to train Hand Function for Activities of Daily Living

This paper presents the evaluation of a new two degree-of-freedom robotic interface, and the development of exercises to train movements and force control of wrist and hand. The Haptic Knob has two actuated parallelogram structures with a knob at the output, to interact with the fingers in a way to simulate grasping/releasing, in combination with pronation/supination movements of the forearm. Motivating game-like exercises have been designed according to a functional approach, where fundamental hand function required in activities of daily living (ADL) can be trained, while the device provides assistive or resistive forces. Preliminary testing has been performed with healthy subjects and three chronic stroke patients. Subjects found the exercises to be comfortable, and the robotic interface offers adequate range of motion and forces. A study with a group of chronic stroke patients will be conducted during the next months to determine the potential benefit of a therapy using our robotic equipment.