{"title":"Instructions from an Active Robotic Hand Increase Body Ownership and Task Clarity.","authors":"Sweder van Dipten, John Paulin Hansen","doi":"10.1109/ICORR66766.2025.11063120","DOIUrl":"10.1109/ICORR66766.2025.11063120","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>This study introduces a novel approach to home rehabilitation exercise instructions, utilizing a 3D-printed robotic hand that can mimic the patient's hand movements and follow pre-programmed instructions. This robotic hand, made from inexpensive 3D printed components and hobbyist equipment, is controlled by open source computer vision tracking. Two within-subject crossover studies were conducted with 30 healthy participants. The first study assessed the participants' sense of embodiment, while the second compared their ability to remember movement exercises when instructed by the robotic hand versus video clips. The results showed that the participants experienced a higher sense of embodiment with the robotic hand in its active mode. Furthermore, they demonstrated significantly better short-term memory retention of medium and difficult finger movement sequences when instructed by the robotic hand compared to video instruction ($F_{1,56}=4.047, mathrm{p}<.05$) and ($F_{1,56}=19.463, mathrm{p}$ $<.05$). These findings suggest that this innovative method could improve remote therapy and strengthen bodily ownership, which is essential in stroke rehabilitation.</p>","PeriodicalId":73276,"journal":{"name":"IEEE ... International Conference on Rehabilitation Robotics : [proceedings]","volume":"2025 ","pages":"70-75"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144612617","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Mapping the Neural Control of Force and Impedance of Wrist Movements Using Robotics and fMRI.","authors":"Kristin Schmidt, Fabrizio Sergi","doi":"10.1109/ICORR66766.2025.11062940","DOIUrl":"10.1109/ICORR66766.2025.11062940","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>While robots are becoming increasingly valuable tools in neurorehabilitation, our limited understanding of the brain's response during human-robot interaction tasks restricts advancements in training programs to restore neural pathways after injury. Co-contraction is characteristic of several neuromuscular disorders, such as stroke and cerebral palsy, and it is often targeted by assessments or rehabilitation programs. Despite its importance, the neural mechanisms underlying cocontraction remain poorly understood. To address this gap, this study investigates the neural substrates of muscle co-contraction via functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) during a dynamic motor task with an MR-compatible wrist robot. To establish suitable fMRI experimental conditions, we first conducted a behavioral study assessing muscle activity during a wrist-pointing task with four participants. Participants reached toward a target while experiencing four main perturbation conditions (no force, divergent force, constant force up, and constant force down), designed to elicit distinct force and impedance responses. Following this behavioral validation, five additional participants performed the wrist-pointing task during fMRI. Our results suggest localization of force and impedance control within the cortico-thalamic-cerebellar network. These findings provide new insights into the neural mechanisms of co-contraction, supporting the development of neurorehabilitation paradigms.</p>","PeriodicalId":73276,"journal":{"name":"IEEE ... International Conference on Rehabilitation Robotics : [proceedings]","volume":"2025 ","pages":"1154-1159"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144612536","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Adib H Laskar, Reza Tafreshi, Muhammad Bin Mughees, Khaled Al-Halabi, Reza Langari, Md Ferdous Wahid
{"title":"Assessing Repeatability of CLEVERArm Exoskeleton Using Healthy Subjects: A Pilot Study.","authors":"Adib H Laskar, Reza Tafreshi, Muhammad Bin Mughees, Khaled Al-Halabi, Reza Langari, Md Ferdous Wahid","doi":"10.1109/ICORR66766.2025.11062963","DOIUrl":"10.1109/ICORR66766.2025.11062963","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Upper extremity (UE) impairments resulting from non-communicable diseases continue to rise annually across the globe. Robotic devices offer promising solutions for mitigating the long-term logistical challenges and limited recovery outcomes associated with short-term, one-to-one rehabilitation sessions. This study presents a repeatability analysis of CLEVERArm (compact, lightweight, ergonomic, VR/AR-enhanced rehabilitation arm), an eight-degrees-of-freedom (DOF) robotic exoskeleton for treating patients with UE impairments, focusing on validating both single-DOF (sDOF) and multi-DOF (mDOF) trajectories produced by the device. Eighteen healthy subjects performed tasks ranging from simple to complex UE movements associated with activities of daily living. The device then autonomously repeated the movements made by the participants. Across all tasks, CLEVERArm demonstrated low root mean square deviation (<3.42°), and high correlations (>0.99) between reference and repetition trajectories recorded by absolute encoders. High intra-class coefficient values (>0.9) further constitute the system's consistency and accuracy in UE movement over time. These results suggest that CLEVERArm can reliably replicate input trajectories, providing consistent and positive outcomes in rehabilitation settings. Future work will utilize the device's ability to accurately replicate trajectories for designing personalized rehabilitation regimens, monitoring patient progress, and tailoring exercises to individual needs, ultimately enhancing long-term recovery for patients with UE impairments.</p>","PeriodicalId":73276,"journal":{"name":"IEEE ... International Conference on Rehabilitation Robotics : [proceedings]","volume":"2025 ","pages":"160-165"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144612507","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Adapting Biomimetic Kinematics for Controlling a Powered-Knee, Passive-Ankle Prosthesis Across Inclines.","authors":"C Andrew Seelhoff, T Kevin Best, Robert D Gregg","doi":"10.1109/ICORR66766.2025.11063136","DOIUrl":"10.1109/ICORR66766.2025.11063136","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Despite promising benefits for people with limb loss, powered multi-joint prostheses from the research field have not been translated into the clinical space. Commercial powered knee prostheses like the Össur Power Knee ${ }^{text{TM}}$ are paired with passive feet which lack the range of motion of biological ankle joints, especially on steep inclines. This discrepancy prevents the direct translation of emerging biomimetic control methods for powered knee-ankle prostheses, which implicitly assume both joints exhibit normative biomechanics. To enable commercial prostheses to benefit from biomimetic control methods on inclines, this paper adapts a continuous knee kinematic model to minimize the difference in global foot angle compared to able-bodied reference data, under the assumption that the ankle joint is locked. In a pilot experiment with an above-knee amputee participant, our adapted controller produced substantial benefits compared to a baseline controller that only tracks ablebodied knee trajectories. Level-ground walking performance is similar to existing methods despite the change of objective, and on steep inclines, prosthesis load-bearing and center of pressure progression are restored to near-normative levels. These results show a promising pathway towards translation of biomimetic control methods onto existing commercial hardware, allowing near-term impacts with tangible benefits for prosthesis users.</p>","PeriodicalId":73276,"journal":{"name":"IEEE ... International Conference on Rehabilitation Robotics : [proceedings]","volume":"2025 ","pages":"228-234"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12258917/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144612476","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Nikhil V Divekar, Ernesto Hernandez Hinojosa, Jiefu Zhang, Robert D Gregg
{"title":"A Task-Agnostic Knee Exoskeleton for Reducing Osteoarthritis Pain Across Activities of Daily Life: A Pilot Study.","authors":"Nikhil V Divekar, Ernesto Hernandez Hinojosa, Jiefu Zhang, Robert D Gregg","doi":"10.1109/ICORR66766.2025.11063102","DOIUrl":"10.1109/ICORR66766.2025.11063102","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Patellofemoral osteoarthritis is a prevalent musculoskeletal disorder characterized by knee pain during physically demanding activities like stair climbing and sit-to-stand transitions. These movements require high knee extension torques, leading to increased quadriceps activation and patellofemoral joint compression, which aggravates pain. While external torque assistance at the knee joint could theoretically reduce joint loads, traditional exoskeletons have not proven effective in managing osteoarthritis due to their rigid actuation, cumber-some attachments, and inadequate control systems. We address these limitations by modifying a commercial post-operative knee brace with a highly-backdrivable actuator and adapting a task-agnostic torque-assist controller, originally designed for lifting and carrying tasks, to accommodate osteoarthritis patients. In pilot trials with four participants with patellofemoral osteoarthritis, our device facilitated substantial reductions in both pain and perceived difficulty across daily activities including stair/ramp navigation, walking, and sit-to-stand transitions. Across all participants and tasks, pain and difficulty were reduced by 0.82 and 0.57 points, respectively (on a scale of 0 to 4). Electromyography revealed decreased quadriceps activation, varying by participant and task. These preliminary findings motivate future research on backdrivable knee exoskeletons as a novel conservative treatment for patellofemoral osteoarthritis.</p>","PeriodicalId":73276,"journal":{"name":"IEEE ... International Conference on Rehabilitation Robotics : [proceedings]","volume":"2025 ","pages":"1437-1443"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12258921/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144612470","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Jia Quan Loh, Vincent Crocher, Denny Oetomo, Ying Tan
{"title":"Can Learning From Demonstration Approaches Encode and Generalise Human Movements for Neurorehabilitation?","authors":"Jia Quan Loh, Vincent Crocher, Denny Oetomo, Ying Tan","doi":"10.1109/ICORR66766.2025.11062990","DOIUrl":"10.1109/ICORR66766.2025.11062990","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The use of robotic systems in Upper-Limb (UL) neurorehabilitation typically involves semi-standardised, simple movement exercises controlled by the robot. However, alternative approaches aim to support more complex movements that align with Activities of Daily Living (ADLs) and offer greater customisation of interactions tailored to individual patients by clinicians. These approaches, however, require increased therapist involvement, which underscores the need for methods that allow clinicians to teach a set of exercises to the robot. This has led to the development of various Learning by Demonstration (LfD) algorithms. These algorithms require the ability to encode the movements demonstrated by the clinician and generalise them across various task variations. Towards this goal, this study compares two existing LfD algorithms, Task-Parameterised Gaussian mixture models (TPGMM) and Dynamic Movement Primitives (DMP), in their capacity to generalise UL movements required for ADLs. The study then extends the best performing algorithm - TPGMM - to encode movements from both healthy and poststroke participants performing a drinking task. TPGMM shows better performance in generalising healthy human movements for tasks and environments of increasing complexity when compared to a model-based approach and DMPs. TPGMM further shows that it better encodes movements of individuals post-stroke compared to ones of healthy individuals.</p>","PeriodicalId":73276,"journal":{"name":"IEEE ... International Conference on Rehabilitation Robotics : [proceedings]","volume":"2025 ","pages":"1-7"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144612520","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Adrian Esser, Chiara Basla, Peter Wolf, Robert Riener
{"title":"Design and Benchmarking of a Two Degree of Freedom Tendon Driver Unit for Cable-Driven Wearable Technologies.","authors":"Adrian Esser, Chiara Basla, Peter Wolf, Robert Riener","doi":"10.1109/ICORR66766.2025.11063015","DOIUrl":"10.1109/ICORR66766.2025.11063015","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Exosuits have recently been developed as alternatives to rigid exoskeletons and are increasingly adopted for both upper and lower limb therapy and assistance in clinical and home environments. Many cable-driven exosuits have been developed but little has been published on their electromechanical designs and performance. Therefore, this paper presents a comprehensive design and performance analysis of a two degree of freedom tendon driver unit (TDU) for cable-driven wearable exosuits. Detailed methodologies are presented to benchmark the functionality of the TDU. A static torque output test compares the commanded and measured torques. A velocity control test evaluates the attenuation and phase shift across velocities. A noise test evaluates how loud the TDU is for the wearer under different speeds. A thermal stress test captures the cooling performance of the TDU to ensure safe operation at higher loads. Finally, a battery endurance test evaluates the runtime of the TDU under various loading conditions to inform the usable time. To demonstrate these tests, a modular TDU system for cable-driven applications is introduced, which allows components such as motors, pulleys, and sensors to be adapted based on the requirements of the intended application. By sharing detailed methodologies and performance results, this study aims to provide a TDU design that may be leveraged by others and resources for researchers and engineers to better document the capabilities of their TDU designs.</p>","PeriodicalId":73276,"journal":{"name":"IEEE ... International Conference on Rehabilitation Robotics : [proceedings]","volume":"2025 ","pages":"88-94"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144612535","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"PLEXUS Hand: Lightweight Four-Motor Prosthetic Hand Enabling Precision-Lateral Dexterous Manipulation.","authors":"Yuki Kuroda, Tomoya Takahashi, Cristian C Beltran-Hernandez, Masashi Hamaya, Kazutoshi Tanaka","doi":"10.1109/ICORR66766.2025.11063043","DOIUrl":"10.1109/ICORR66766.2025.11063043","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Electric prosthetic hands should be lightweight to decrease the burden on the user, shaped like human hands for cosmetic purposes, and have motors inside to protect them from damage and dirt. In addition to the ability to perform daily activities, these features are essential for everyday use of the hand. In-hand manipulation is necessary to perform daily activities such as transitioning between different postures, particularly through rotational movements, such as reorienting cards before slot insertion and operating tools such as screwdrivers. However, currently used electric prosthetic hands only achieve static grasp postures, and existing manipulation approaches require either many motors, which makes the prosthesis heavy for daily use in the hand, or complex mechanisms that demand a large internal space and force external motor placement, complicating attachment and exposing the components to damage. Alternatively, we combine a single-axis thumb and optimized thumb positioning to achieve basic posture and in-hand manipulation, that is, the reorientation between precision and lateral grasps, using only four motors in a lightweight (311 g) prosthetic hand. Experimental validation using primitive objects of various widths (5-30 mm) and shapes (cylinders and prisms) resulted in success rates of 90-100% for reorientation tasks. The hand performed seal stamping and USB device insertion, as well as rotation to operate a screwdriver.</p>","PeriodicalId":73276,"journal":{"name":"IEEE ... International Conference on Rehabilitation Robotics : [proceedings]","volume":"2025 ","pages":"22-29"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144612684","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Sebastian Dill, Luise Herrmann, Arjang Ahmadi, Martin Grimmer, Dennis Haufe, Yanhua Zhao, Maziar Sharbafi, Christoph Hoog Antink
{"title":"Analysis of Different Sensor Modalities for Movement Classification in Physical Therapy.","authors":"Sebastian Dill, Luise Herrmann, Arjang Ahmadi, Martin Grimmer, Dennis Haufe, Yanhua Zhao, Maziar Sharbafi, Christoph Hoog Antink","doi":"10.1109/ICORR66766.2025.11063078","DOIUrl":"10.1109/ICORR66766.2025.11063078","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>This study investigates feature analysis and feature fusion from different sensor modalities for the task of identifying movement errors in physiotherapeutic exercises, using squats as a case study. Incorrectly performed exercises can lead to injuries, underscoring the need for accurate monitoring tools. In an experiment, ten participants performed squats in three variations: correct execution, forward lean, and lateral tilt. To identify movement patterns, we evaluated muscle activation through electromyography (EMG), kinematic data through Motion Capture (MoCap) and joint angles from video footage through MediaPipe Pose. Distinct movement patterns were identified for the erroneous variations: forward lean altered hip and knee angles, while lateral tilt caused asymmetries in posture. In the EMG signal, deviations in the activity of distinct muscles correlated clearly with specific erroneous movements. Activation in the Gluteus Maximus was higher for the forward lean, while activity in the Quadriceps was lower. For the lateral tilt, a clear difference between left and right muscle activation was visible. Signal processing techniques extracted key features, such as muscle activation peaks and joint angle deviations, that we used to discern between the different squat types with a decision tree model. MoCap-based features offered the highest precision when used on their own, but fusing different sensor modalities achieved the best results. Although the video-based classifications were less accurate, its cost-effectiveness and ease-of-use suggest potential for home rehabilitation. Future research should enhance marker-less technologies and enable real-time feedback for broader applications.</p>","PeriodicalId":73276,"journal":{"name":"IEEE ... International Conference on Rehabilitation Robotics : [proceedings]","volume":"2025 ","pages":"1409-1415"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144612499","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Non-Invasive Spatiotemporal Spinal Cord Stimulation Paired with Force Perturbations Improves Balance in Individuals Post-Stroke: A Pilot Study.","authors":"Ming Wu, Shijun Yan, Hyosok Lim, Iram Hameeduddin, Weena Dee, Velarie Pech","doi":"10.1109/ICORR66766.2025.11063158","DOIUrl":"10.1109/ICORR66766.2025.11063158","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The goal of this study was to determine the feasibility of applying targeted force perturbations paired with spatiotemporal transcutaneous spinal cord stimulation during walking for improving balance in individuals post-stroke. Five individuals with chronic stroke ($>6$ months) were recruited and completed 6 sessions (3 times/week) of balance training paired with spatiotemporal spinal cord stimulation. Balance was assessed pre, post 2 weeks of training, and follow-up, i.e., 2 weeks after the end of training. Results indicated that individuals post-stroke could tolerate the force perturbations applied to the pelvis paired with spatiotemporal spinal cord stimulation during walking. Further, individual post-stroke showed improvements in balance, assessed using the Dynamic Gait Index and Berg Balance Scale scores, after targeted force perturbation balance training paired with spatiotemporal spinal cord stimulation, although this was not significant due to the small sample size. Results from this study suggest that it was feasible to improve balance in individuals poststroke using targeted pelvis force perturbations paired with spatiotemporal spinal cord stimulation during walking.</p>","PeriodicalId":73276,"journal":{"name":"IEEE ... International Conference on Rehabilitation Robotics : [proceedings]","volume":"2025 ","pages":"1811-1816"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144612656","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}