Pneumatic robotic systems for upper limb rehabilitation
Ricardo Morales, Francisco Javier Badesa, Nicolas Garcia-Aracil, Jose Maria Sabater, Carlos Perez-Vidal
MEDICAL & BIOLOGICAL ENGINEERING & COMPUTING  (2011)
 ISSN:0140-0118  - Vol. 49 pp. 1145-1156

Resumen:

The aim of rehabilitation robotic area is to research on the application of robotic devices to therapeutic procedures. The goal is to achieve the best possible motor, cognitive and functional recovery for people with impair- ments following various diseases. Pneumatic actuators are attractive for robotic rehabilitation applications because they are lightweight, powerful, and compliant, but their control has historically been difficult, limiting their use. This article first reviews the current state-of-art in reha- bilitation robotic devices with pneumatic actuation systems reporting main features and control issues of each thera- peutic device. Then, a new pneumatic rehabilitation robot for proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation therapies and for relearning daily living skills: like taking a glass, drinking, and placing object on shelves is described as a case study and compared with the current pneumatic rehabilitation devices.