Robotically-Aided Hand Rehabilitation

描述(由申请人提供)：建议开发一种康复机器人，为中风和创伤性脑损伤导致的手功能缺陷患者提供治疗。机器人将提供重复打开和关闭手指手指的手指的方式，提供1)类似于手抓住物体时的感觉反馈，2)与患者的功能水平相称的外加力的调节，以及3)使治疗师不需要手动移动肢体/关节通过其周期。机器人机构将被设计成允许患者以复制抓取的正常运动学的方式抓取和释放物体。机器人可以提供被动的运动范围，但会使用反馈(非常虚弱的手的早期康复阶段的肌肉肌电，一旦检测到主动运动就使用力反馈)来调整它为患者发起或执行抓取动作的尝试提供的帮助。 第一阶段将启动拟议机器人的开发，包括计算机控制的机器人系统原型的设计、建造和台架测试。在完成台架测试后，该系统将由罗切斯特的梅奥诊所的研究人员和临床医生进行评估。在第二阶段，将在梅奥诊所对该设备进行随机、受控的临床评估，评估更完整的机器人原型的实用性，并根据力和肌电反馈帮助患者。这项评估将涉及患有神经性手损伤的患者，并将被设计用于比较机器人辅助治疗与最好的传统护理。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Development of a rehabilitation robot to provide therapy to patients with hand function deficits, due to stroke and traumatic brain injury, is proposed. The robot will provide repetitive opening and closing of the digits of the fingers of the hand in a manner that provides 1) sensory feedback similar to that a hand would experience when grasping an object, 2) modulation of applied forces commensurate with the patient's level of function, and 3) frees the therapist from the need to manually move the limb/joint through its cycle. The robotic mechanism will be designed to permit the patient to grasp and release an object in a manner that replicates the normal kinematics of grasping. The robot can provide passive range of motion but will use feedback (muscle EMG for the early stages of rehabilitation of a very weak hand, force feedback once active motion is detected) to adjust the assistance it provides to the patient's attempts to initiate or carry out a grasping maneuver. Phase I will initiate development of the proposed robot, including design, construction, and bench testing of a computer-controlled robotic system prototype. Upon completion of bench testing, the system will be evaluated by researchers and clinicians at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester. In Phase II, the utility of a more complete robot prototype, with assistance to the patient based on force and EMG feedback, will be assessed in a randomized, controlled clinical evaluation of the device at the Mayo Clinic. This evaluation would involve patients who have neurological hand impairments and would be designed to compare robotic assisted therapy against the best conventional care.