A force-feedback exoskeleton for upper-limb rehabilitation in virtual reality

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Frisoli, Antonio | Salsedo, Fabio | Bergamasco, Massimo | Rossi, Bruno | Carboncini, Maria C.

Affiliations: PERCRO, Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna, Pisa, Italy | Neurorehabilitation Unit, Department of Neuro sciences, University of Pisa, Italy

Note: [] Corresponding author. Email: a.frisoli@sssup.it

Abstract: This paper presents the design and the clinical validation of an upper-limb force-feedback exoskeleton, the L-EXOS, for robotic-assisted rehabilitation in virtual reality (VR). The L-EXOS is a five degrees of freedom exoskeleton with a wearable structure and anthropomorphic workspace that can cover the full range of motion of human arm. A specific VR application focused on the reaching task was developed and evaluated on a group of eight post-stroke patients, to assess the efficacy of the system for the rehabilitation of upper limb. The evaluation showed a significant reduction of the performance error in the reaching task (paired t-test, p < 0.02).

Keywords: exoskeleton, rehabilitation robotics, virtual reality

DOI: 10.1080/11762320902959250

Journal: Applied Bionics and Biomechanics, vol. 6, no. 2, pp. 115-126, 2009