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Research Paper

Design and control of an active 1-DoF mechanism for knee rehabilitation

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Pages 588-594 | Received 16 Oct 2014, Accepted 05 Mar 2015, Published online: 26 Mar 2015
 

Abstract

A 1-DoF robot is designed and fabricated to be used for knee rehabilitation training. The mechanism (robot) is designed to perform specific set of exercises while the patient is sitting on a chair. The therapy process for patients has different stages; each stage consists of specific exercises to recover the knee to its condition before injury. The maximum torque of healthy joint during the extension/flexion exercise is evaluated by simulation and suitable actuator is selected based on the results. A prototype is then fabricated as a platform to evaluate the design and control concepts. The experiment procedure consisting of three stages of therapy indicates good tracking performance and safe operation of the system.

    Implication for Rehabilitation

  • A 1-DoF mechanism for knee rehabilitation has been designed to perform three stages of therapy: passive, active assist and active resist.

  • The assistive and resistive torque, during active assist and active resist stages, can be set according to the progress in therapy.

  • The results of this study suggest the system has the potential to result in various benefits including reduction of physical workload of physiotherapists and improved repeatability.

Declaration of interest

We also certify that no conflict of interest in relation to this article exists. This work was supported by the research council of University of Tehran. Additional support was provided by Iranian National Science Foundation (INSF).

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