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Dynamic biomechanical model for assessing and monitoring robot-assisted upper-limb therapy

Hussein A. Abdullah, PhD, PEng, et al.

Figure. Kinematics diagram of proposed biomechanical model showing frame designation for joints modeled degrees of freedom.

We described the design, validation, and application of a dynamic biomechanical model for assessing and monitoring trajectory, position, orientation, force, and torque generated by movements of the whole upper limb (UL) during robot-assisted therapy. The model, a useful tool for enhancing the functionality of poststroke robot-assisted UL therapy, performs inverse dynamic analyses of the recorded arm's movements to calculate reaction forces and moments acting about the 3 degrees of freedom (DOF) shoulder and 2 DOF elbow joints. We assigned 20 nondisabled subjects three different therapeutic exercises to test and validate the biomechanical model. We found that when the biomechanical model is taught an exercise, it can accurately predict a subject's actual UL joint angles and torques.

Volume 44 Number 1 2007
Pages 43 — 62

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