Hostname: page-component-6587cd75c8-6qszs Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2025-04-24T01:35:42.189Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Challenges in service robot devices for elderly motion assistance

Part of: The 40th Anniversary of Robotica

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 November 2024

Marco Ceccarelli Open the ORCID record for Marco Ceccarelli [Opens in a new window]
Marco Ceccarelli*
Affiliation:
Department of Industrial Engineering, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
*
Email: [email protected]
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Motion assistance for elderly people is a field of application for service robotic systems that can be characterized by requirements and constraints of human–machine interaction and by the specificity of the user’s conditions. The main aspects of characterization and constraints are examined for the application of service systems that can be specifically conceived or adapted for elderly motion assistance by having to consider conditions of motion deficiency and muscular strength weakness as well as psychological aptitudes of users. The analysis is discussed in general terms with reference to elderly people who may not even suffer from specific pathologies. Therefore, the discussion focuses on the need for motion exercise in proper environments, including domestic ones and frame familiar to a user. The challenges of such applications oriented toward elderly users are discussed as requiring research and design of solutions in terms of specific portability, user-oriented operation, low costs, and clinical-physiotherapeutic functionality. Results of the author’s team experiences are presented as an example of problems and attempted solutions to meet the new challenges of service systems for motion assistance applications for elderly people.

Keywords

service roboticsmedical devicesmotion assistancedesignperformance analysisprototypes
Type
Research Article
Information
Robotica , Volume 42 , Special Issue 12: The 40th Anniversary of Robotic , December 2024 , pp. 4186 - 4199
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2024. Published by Cambridge University Press

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Article purchase

Temporarily unavailable

References

Rupal, B. S., Rafique, S., Singla, A., Singla, E., Isaksson, M. and Virk, G. S., “Lower-limb exoskeletons: Research trends and regulatory guidelines in medical and non-medical applications,” Int J Adv Robot Syst 14(6), 172988141774355 (2017). doi: 10.1177/1729881417743554.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gull, M. A., Bai, S. and Bak, T., “A review on design of upper limb exoskeletons,” Robotics 9(1), 16 (2020). doi: 10.3390/robotics9010016.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Maciejasz, P., Eschweiler, J., Gerlach-Hahn, K., Jansen-Troy, A. and Leonhardt, S., “A survey on robotic devices for upper limb rehabilitation,” J Neuroeng Rehabil 11(1), 3 (2014).CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Mahoney, R. M., Van der Loos, H. F. M., Lum, P. S. and Burgar, C., “Robotic stroke therapy assistant,” Robotica 21(1), 33–44 (2003).CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Van Delden, A. L. E. Q., Peper, C. L. E., Kwakkel, G. and Beek, P. J., “A systematic review of bilateral upper limb training devices for poststroke rehabilitation,” Stroke Res Treat 2012, 972069 (2012).Google ScholarPubMed
Sá de Paiva, T., Sales Goncalves, R., Carbone, G. and Marco Ceccarelli, M., “CHAPTER 4 Gait Devices for Stroke Rehabilitation: State-of-the-Art, Challenges,” In: Medical and Healthcare Robotics, (Elsevier Inc, 2023) pp. 87–122. doi: 10.1016/B978-0-443-18460-4.00003-2.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rodríguez-León, J. F., Chaparro-Rico, B. D., Russo, M. and Cafolla, D., “An autotuning cable-driven device for home rehabilitation,” J Healthc Eng 2021, 6680762 (2021).CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kwakkel, G., Kollen, B. J. and Krebs, H. I., “Effects of robot-assisted therapy on upper limb recovery after stroke: A systematic review,” Neurorehabilit Neural Repair 22(2), 111–121 (2008).CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Nef, T., Mihelj, M. and Riener, R., “ARMin: A robot for patient-cooperative arm therapy,” Med Biol Eng Comput 45(9), 887–900 (2007).CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mao, Y. and Agrawal, S. K., “Design of a cable-driven arm exoskeleton (CAREX) for neural rehabilitation,” IEEE Trans Robot 28(4), 922–931 (2012).CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Frisoli, A., Bergamasco, M., Carboncini, M. C. and Rossi, B., “Robotic assisted rehabilitation in virtual reality with the L-EXOS,” Stud Health Technol Inf 145, 40–54 (2009).Google ScholarPubMed
Ball, S. J., Brown, I. E. and Scott, S. H., “MEDARM: A Rehabilitation Robot with 5DOF at the Shoulder Complex,” In: Proceedings of the 2007 IEEE/ASME International Conference on Advanced Intelligent Mechatronics, Zurich, Switzerland (2007) pp. 1–6.Google Scholar
Gopura, R. A. R. C., Kiguchi, K. and Li, Y., “SUEFUL-7: A 7DOF Upper-Limb Exoskeleton Robot with Muscle-Model-Oriented EMG-Based Control,” In: Proceedings of the 2009 IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems, St, Louis, MI, USA (2009) pp. 1126–1131.Google Scholar
Rosati, G., Gallina, P., Masiero, S. and Rossi, A., “Design of a New 5 d.o.f. Wire-Based Robot for Rehabilitation,” In: Proceedings of the 2005 IEEE 9th International Conference on Rehabilitation Robotics, Chicago, IL, USA (2005) pp. 430–433.Google Scholar
Pang, Z., Wang, T., Wang, Z., Yu, J., Sun, Z. and Liu, S., “Design and analysis of a wearable upper limb rehabilitation robot with characteristics of tension mechanism,” Appl Sci 10(6), 2101 (2020).CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Huang, G., Ceccarelli, M., Zhang, W. and Huang, Q., “Design and performance of BIT lexochair, a robotic leg-exoskeleton assistive wheelchair,” Int J Phys Med Rehabil 9, 1000581 (2020).Google Scholar
Ceccarelli, M., Fundamentals of Mechanics of Robotic Manipulation (second Edition) edition, (Springer, Cham, 2022).https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-030-90848-5.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ceccarelli, M. (Editor), Service Robots and Robotics: Design and Application (IGI Global, Pennsylvania, PA, USA, 2012).CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ceccarelli, M., Ferrara, L. and Petuya, V., “Design of a Cable-Driven Device for Elbow Rehabilitation and Exercise,” In: Interdisciplinary Applications of Kinematics, (Springer, Cham, Switzerland, 2019) pp. 61–68.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Zuccon, G., Bottin, M., Ceccarelli, M. and Rosati, G., “Design and performance of an elbow assisting mechanism,” Machines 8(4), 68 (2020).CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Laribi, M. A. and Ceccarelli, M., “Design and experimental characterization of a cable-driven elbow assisting device,” J Med Devices 15(1), 014503 (2021).CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ceccarelli, M., Riabtsev, M., Fort, A., Russo, M., Laribi, M. A. and Urizar, M., “Design and experimental characterization of L-CADEL v2, an assistive device for elbow motion,” Sensors 21(15), 5149 (2021). doi: 10.3390/s21155149.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Carbone, G., Gerding, E. C., Corves, B., Cafolla, D., Russo, M. and Ceccarelli, C., “Design of a two-DOFs driving mechanism for a motion-assisted finger exoskeleton,” Appl Sci 10(7), 2619 (2020). doi: 10.3390/app10072619.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ceccarelli, M. and Morales-Cruz, C., “A prototype characterization of exoFinger, a finger exoskeleton,” Int J Adv Robot Syst 18(3), 1–8 (2021). doi: 10.1177/17298814211024880.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Damarla, A. P., Russo, M. and Ceccarelli, M., “Control design and testing for a finger exoskeleton mechanism,” Actuators 11(8), 230 (2022). doi: 10.3390/act11080230.CrossRefGoogle Scholar