Rehabilitation control strategies for a gait robot via EMG evaluation

Abstract

Therapists often emphasize selection and design of proper training programs for individual patients in different situations and rehabilitation stages. Thus, in order to cater different patient groups, this paper proposes four assistant control strategies for robotic rehabilitation of gait locomotion: (1) orthosis-free, (2) totally-passive, (3) optimal assistance and (4) resistance exercise. A robotic gait system with pelvic control (PC) is also designed by integrating body weight support (BWS), robotic orthosis (RO), parallelogram arm (PA), and mobile platform (MP). This paper also investigates the electromyography (EMG) signals from the eight major muscles of the leg and compares them to those created by our robotic device. The initial results of clinical trials indicate the potential for robotic rehabilitation in patients with gait impairments.