Design And Development Of Robot End-Effector For The Use In Lower-Limb Stroke Rehabilitation Exercises
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Date
2022-07-25
Authors
Murugaya, Thivines
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Universiti Sains Malaysia
Abstract
Stroke is the second largest cause of human death worldwide and is also a major
cause of long-term disability such as walking gait abnormalities. Rehabilitation is
essential in helping patients regain as much motor function as possible. Robot assisted
rehabilitation is currently the forefront in this regard. However, no solutions are
currently widely available for use in developing countries like Malaysia. Therefore,
there is space for such a product to be developed and commercialized. Thus, a smart
lower-limb end-effector prototype that can be installed on a collaborative robot to aid
patients performing exercises such as plantarflexion, dorsiflexion, hip abduction and
hip adduction was developed. The project kick started by designing the end effector as
four different parts on in Solidwork. This step is then followed by slicing process using
Ultimaker Cura and then 3D printing. The 3D printed is then assembled up and tested
for strength and design accuracy. At this stage, any design failure is then followed by
redesigning and 3D printing again. Meanwhile, MPU6050 sensor was coded using
Arduino Uno and powered by NodeMcu. This set up was placed on the foot holder to
measure the rehabilitation angle. The sensor is also connected any app which was
developed using Blynk to showcase the data obtained in terms of angle X˚, Y˚ and Z˚
Then, two healthy subjects, a male and female were choosen to carry out all four type
of exercises mentioned above. The results obtained shows that angle recorded falls
within the range of a human to carry out those exercise (20-35° of dorsiflexion, 15-30°
of plantarflexion, 30–55° of hip abduction and 15–30° of hip adduction). This shows
that the end effector perms well and can be used to aid physiotherapist and the patient.
Therefore, a smart lower-limb end-effector prototype that can be installed on a
collaborative robot to aid patients performing various leg exercises has been
successfully created which also incooperates IoT elements.