Exoskeleton-Based Hand Rehabilitation for Posts Stroke Motor Recovery

Abstract

Stroke has been haunting humans since the day we put a foot in this world. Today millions of people experience a form of stroke every year. While many survive the stroke, they become either partially or fully paralyzed. As the paralysis is due to the lack of activity in the nervous system, and the nervous system takes an absurd amount of time for recovery, it has become a major health challenge in today’s world. In order to rehabilitate the paralyzed organs, it’s often put through rigorous training as the patient slow regains his/her motor functions. As new technologies emerge, so do new and innovative solutions to the existing problems. In the case of rehabilitation devices, there are many devices available in the market offering a wide range of applications, but the costs are extremely high which makes is inaccessible to the general masses. ExHar is an exoskeleton device that helps in the rehabilitation of motor function of hand in stroke patients. This device is a 3D-printed design and offers many of the features offered by high-end devices in the field. This device rehabilitates hand movements by the means of different exercises. Each exercise targets the movements of a joint or several joints, which help fasten the rehabilitation process and make it more efficient. The device can be used for a range of different time durations while holding the same level of efficacy in the outcome. The main focus of the device, at this stage, is on the rehabilitation of fingers’ motor functions such as griping, pinching, and holding. The device helps in the restoration of the mentioned function in hand. This device, using 3D printing technology, cuts the price of the similar device drastically to ensure its availability to everyone in society. Not only, patients will have access to the device in medical clinics and hospitals, they will have the option to buy such a device because of its low cost. By decreasing the costs and making the device portable, we aim to integrate modern robotics technology into stroke rehabilitation and recovery for the foreseeable future.