A wheelchair operation assistance control for a wearable robot using the user's residual function

Abstract

Cervical Cord Injury (CCI) is a dysfunction of the upper limb. In an individual with C5-level CCI, which is the most frequent of all eight levels, force can be applied in the direction of flexion by the biceps brachii, but extension force cannot be applied because of the triceps brachii paralysis. Persons with C5-level CCI therefore cannot operate a wheelchair up an incline and over carpet. In this study, we estimated the wheelchair velocity during elbow flexion depending on the angular velocity of the elbow. A wearable assistive robot can assist with the elbow extension movement using this estimated velocity while the wheelchair is being operated.