Integration of a Passive Exoskeleton and a Robotic Supernumerary Finger for Grasping Compensation in Chronic Stroke Patients: The SoftPro Wearable System

Gionata Salvietti; Leonardo Franco; Martin Tschiersky; Gerjan Wolterink; Matteo Bianchi; Antonio Bicchi; Federica Barontini; Manuel Catalano; Giorgio Grioli; Mattia Poggiani; Simone Rossi; Domenico Prattichizzo

doi:10.3389/frobt.2021.661354

Integration of a Passive Exoskeleton and a Robotic Supernumerary Finger for Grasping Compensation in Chronic Stroke Patients: The SoftPro Wearable System

Front Robot AI. 2021 Jun 10:8:661354. doi: 10.3389/frobt.2021.661354. eCollection 2021.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Siena Robotics and Systems Laboratory Group, Department of Information Engineering and Mathematical Science, University of Siena, Siena, Italy.
² Chair of Precision Engineering, Department of Engineering Technology, University of Twente, Enschede, Netherlands.
³ Biomedical Signals and Systems (BSS) and Robotics and Mechatronics (RAM) Group, Department of Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science, University of Twente, Enschede, Netherlands.
⁴ Research Centre "E. Piaggio" and Department of Information Engineering, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy.
⁵ Soft Robotics for Human Cooperation and Rehabilitation, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Genova, Italy.
⁶ Brain Investigation and Neuromodulation Lab, Department of Medicine, Surgery and Neuroscience, University of Siena, Siena, Italy.

Abstract

Upper-limb impairments are all-pervasive in Activities of Daily Living (ADLs). As a consequence, people affected by a loss of arm function must endure severe limitations. To compensate for the lack of a functional arm and hand, we developed a wearable system that combines different assistive technologies including sensing, haptics, orthotics and robotics. The result is a device that helps lifting the forearm by means of a passive exoskeleton and improves the grasping ability of the impaired hand by employing a wearable robotic supernumerary finger. A pilot study involving 3 patients, which was conducted to test the capability of the device to assist in performing ADLs, confirmed its usefulness and serves as a first step in the investigation of novel paradigms for robotic assistance.

Keywords: assistive robotics; exoskeletons; human-robot interfaces; upper-limb impairments; wearable robotics.