Lower Limb Rehabilitation Equipment with Animation Performance for Isotonic and Isokinetic Exercises

Abstract

Loss of leg function is the main disabilities in the lower limb due to the stroke. Rehabilitation plays an important role for recovery after stroke that will help the patient to relearn skills that have lost when a stroke affected part of the brain. Typically, stroke patients work one-on-one with therapists who help them repeatedly perform the exercise. Repetition helps strengthen and create new pathways in the brain during sessions lasting up to three hours. Unfortunately, the number of the therapist is limited to work with numerous patients. So, a lower limb rehabilitation equipment with animation performance had been developed for post-stroke rehabilitation exercise. Specifically, the designed lower limb rehabilitation equipment system consists of EMG electrodes, Arduino Leonardo, SHEILD-EKG-EMG board, animation controller and a linear actuator which is able to model related therapeutic exercises for the lower limb rehabilitation. Additionally, the linear actuator can move the patient’s leg from 45° to 135° clockwise and counterclockwise. This will enable the lower limb to move in flexion and extension motion in 1 degree of freedom (DOF). Via actuator that uses a rechargeable battery, users (i.e. patients) just need to press the controller to move the lower limb with the help of rehabilitation equipment in order to perform a complete limb rehabilitation procedure. For stroke patients, a forward and reverse movement can help them in strengthening their affected limb. Apart from that, rehabilitation equipment is interfaced to the Alice 3.3 animation that visualizes rehab exercise which makes patient motivated to do rehab and more interesting. The EMG electrode is attached to the rectus femoris muscle to analyze the muscle activity during the exercise. As a conclusion, the outcomes achieved may facilitate us to contribute towards the development of lower limb rehabilitation equipment with animation performance which brings advantages to patients and eases their difficulty during the healing process.