A Cable-Driven Portable Fitness Chair with Programmable Resistance for Effective Muscle Training.

The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the lifestyle of society and the interest in health and fitness has greatly increased, accordingly. Recently, motorized devices that allow fine and automatic adjustment of resistance without physically changing the applied weight have been released to the market. In fact, these devices have eased the resistance-changing process.

Lumbar Stability in Healthy Individuals and Low Back Pain Patients Quantified by Wall Plank-and-Roll Test.

Background: Low back pain (LBP) has been linked to the degree of lumbar stability, but evaluating lumbar stability has remained a challenge. Previous research has shown that inertial sensors could be used to quantify motor patterns during the wall plank-and-roll (WPR) test, and that LBP may cause deviations in movement from the general motor patterns observed in healthy individuals.

Objective: To generalize the lumbar motor patterns during the WPR test in healthy individuals, and to analyze the effect of aging and LBP on the motor patterns during the WPR test.

Unobtrusive Estimation of Cardiorespiratory Fitness with Daily Activity in Healthy Young Men.

Despite the importance of cardiorespiratory fitness, no practical method exists to estimate maximal oxygen consumption (VO₂max) without a specific exercise protocol. We developed an estimation model of VO₂max, using maximal activity energy expenditure (aEEmax) as a new feature to represent the level of physical activity. Electrocardiogram (ECG) and acceleration data were recorded for 4 days in 24 healthy young men, and reference VO₂max levels were measured using the maximal exercise test.

An assessment of the accuracy of a novel weight estimation device for children.

Background: We sought to validate the accuracy and assess the efficacy of a newly developed electronic weight estimation device (ie, the rolling tape) for paediatric weight estimation.

Methods: We enrolled a convenience sample of children aged <17 years presenting to our emergency department who volunteered to participate in the study. The children's heights and weights were measured, and three researchers estimated these values using the rolling tape and Broselow tape at 5 min intervals.

Validation of Attitude and Heading Reference System and Microsoft Kinect for Continuous Measurement of Cervical Range of Motion Compared to the Optical Motion Capture System.

Objective: To compare optical motion capture system (MoCap), attitude and heading reference system (AHRS) sensor, and Microsoft Kinect for the continuous measurement of cervical range of motion (ROM).

Methods: Fifteen healthy adult subjects were asked to sit in front of the Kinect camera with optical markers and AHRS sensors attached to the body in a room equipped with optical motion capture camera. Subjects were instructed to independently perform axial rotation followed by flexion/extension and lateral bending.

Measurement of Shoulder Range of Motion in Patients with Adhesive Capsulitis Using a Kinect.

Range of motion (ROM) measurements are essential for the evaluation for and diagnosis of adhesive capsulitis of the shoulder (AC). However, taking these measurements using a goniometer is inconvenient and sometimes unreliable. The Kinect (Microsoft, Seattle, WA, USA) is gaining attention as a new motion detecting device that is nonintrusive and easy to implement.

Quantification of Lumbar Stability During Wall Plank-and-Roll Activity Using Inertial Sensors.

Objective: To develop a simple method of quantifying dynamic lumbar stability by evaluating postural changes of the lumbar spine during a wall plank-and-roll (WPR) activity while maintaining maximal trunk rigidity.

Design: A descriptive, exploratory research with a convenience sample.

Setting: A biomechanics laboratory of a tertiary university hospital.

A grip force model for the da Vinci end-effector to predict a compensation force.

A torque transfer system (TTS) that measures grip forces is developed to resolve a potential drawback of the current da Vinci robot system whose grip forces vary according to the different postures of its EndoWrist. A preliminary model of EndoWrist Inner Mechanism Model (EIMM) is also developed and validated with real grip force measurements. EndoWrist's grip forces, posture angles, and transferred torque are measured by using TTS.

A study on the development of a robot-assisted automatic laser hair removal system.

Unlabelled: Abstract Background and Objective: The robot-assisted automatic laser hair removal (LHR) system is developed to automatically detect any arbitrary shape of the desired LHR treatment area and to provide uniform laser irradiation to the designated skin area.

Methods: For uniform delivery of laser energy, a unit of a commercial LHR device, a laser distance sensor, and a high-resolution webcam are attached at the six axis industrial robot's end-effector, which can be easily controlled using a graphical user interface (GUI). During the treatment, the system provides real-time treatment progress as well as the total number of "pick and place" automatically.

Pneumatic-type surgical robot end-effector for laparoscopic surgical-operation-by-wire.

Background: Although minimally invasive surgery (MIS) affords several advantages compared to conventional open surgery, robotic MIS systems still have many limitations. One of the limitations is the non-uniform gripping force due to mechanical strings of the existing systems. To overcome this limitation, a surgical instrument with a pneumatic gripping system consisting of a compressor, catheter balloon, micro motor, and other parts is developed.

Tool to visualize and evaluate operator proficiency in laser hair-removal treatments.

Background: The uniform delivery of laser energy is particularly important for safe and effective laser hair removal (LHR) treatment. Although it is necessary to quantitatively assess the spatial distribution of the delivered laser, laser spots are difficult to trace owing to a lack of visual cues. This study proposes a novel preclinic tool to evaluate operator proficiency in LHR treatment and applies this tool to train novice operators and compare two different treatment techniques (sliding versus spot-by-spot).

Influence of the washing program on the blood processing performance of a continuous autotransfusion device.

The continuous autotransfusion system has been widely used in surgical operations. It is known that if oil is added to blood, and this mixture is then processed by an autotransfusion device, the added oil is removed and reinfusion of fat is prevented by the device. However, there is no detailed report on the influence of the particular washing program selected on the levels of blood components including blood fat after continuous autotransfusion using such a system.

Manikin-integrated digital measuring system for assessment of infant cardiopulmonary resuscitation techniques.

The process of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) involves various components that must be followed to deliver high quality of CPR. While the components commonly apply to CPR for all ages from infant to adult, there are several different suggestions for infant CPR such as two-thumb CPR and two-finger CPR. However, the comprehensive evaluation based on all these components has been difficult in the absence of proper evaluation tool.

Development and evaluation of an automatic acne lesion detection program using digital image processing.

Background/purpose: Existing acne grading methods, which depend on overall impression, require a long training period and there is a high degree of variability among raters, including trained dermatologists. The use of lesion count provides fair reproducibility but the method is time consuming. New technologies in photographic equipment and software allow solutions to the problem of acne evaluation.