Design of a Passive Wearable Device Using an Optimized Mechanical Metamaterial for Mirror Therapy.

Mirror Therapy (MT) is an effective therapeutic method used in the rehabilitation of hemiplegics. The effectiveness of this method is improved by employing a bi-modal approach which requires the synchronous movement of the affected and unaffected arm. For this purpose, we describe the design of a wearable device using a Mechanical Metamaterial (MM) that is optimized for the specific user to provide passive assistance of wrist flexion-extension and enable synchronous motion of the affected and unaffected arm during MT.

Learning-Based Motion-Intention Prediction for End-Point Control of Upper-Limb-Assistive Robots.

The lack of intuitive and active human-robot interaction makes it difficult to use upper-limb-assistive devices. In this paper, we propose a novel learning-based controller that intuitively uses onset motion to predict the desired end-point position for an assistive robot. A multi-modal sensing system comprising inertial measurement units (IMUs), electromyographic (EMG) sensors, and mechanomyography (MMG) sensors was implemented.

Soft, Lightweight Wearable Robots to Support the Upper Limb in Activities of Daily Living: A Feasibility Study on Chronic Stroke Patients.

Stroke can be a devastating condition that impairs the upper limb and reduces mobility. Wearable robots can aid impaired users by supporting performance of Activities of Daily Living (ADLs). In the past decade, soft devices have become popular due to their inherent malleable and low-weight properties that makes them generally safer and more ergonomic.

A Microfabricated Dual Slip-Pressure Sensor with Compliant Polymer-Liquid Metal Nanocomposite for Robotic Manipulation.

Conventional grippers fall behind their human counterparts as they do not have integrated sensing capabilities. Piezoresistive and capacitive sensors are popular choices because of their design and sensitivity, but they cannot measure pressure and slip simultaneously. It is imperative to measure slip and pressure concurrently.

Haptic Manipulation of 3D Scans for Geometric Feature Enhancement.

Localisation of geometric features like holes, edges, slots, etc. is vital to robotic planning in industrial automation settings. Low-cost 3D scanners are crucial in terms of improving accessibility, but pose a practical challenge to feature localisation because of poorer resolution and consequently affect robotic planning.

Review of Current Spinal Robotic Orthoses.

Osteoporotic spine fractures (OSF) are common sequelae of osteoporosis. OSF are directly correlated with increasing age and incidence of osteoporosis. OSF are treated conservatively or surgically.

Multi-Compartment 3D-Cultured Organ-on-a-Chip: Towards a Biomimetic Lymph Node for Drug Development.

The interaction of immune cells with drugs and/or with other cell types should be mechanistically investigated in order to reduce attrition of new drug development. However, they are currently only limited technologies that address this need. In our work, we developed initial but significant building blocks that enable such immune-drug studies.

IMU-based assistance modulation in upper limb soft wearable exosuits.

Soft exosuits have advantages over their rigid counterparts in terms of portability, transparency and ergonomics. Our previous work has shown that a soft, fabric-based exosuit, actuated by an electric motor and a Bowden cable, reduced the muscular effort of the user when flexing the elbow. This previous exosuit used a gravity compensation algorithm with the assumption that the shoulder was adducted at the trunk.

Switching Assistance for Exoskeletons During Cyclic Motions.

This paper proposes a novel control algorithm for torque-controlled exoskeletons assisting cyclic movements. The control strategy is based on the injection of energy parcels into the human-robot system with a timing that minimizes perturbations, i.e.

Studying the magnetic stimulation of nervous tissues: A calculation framework to investigate stimulation areas.

The electromagnetic stimulation of nervous tissue has represented an alternative to electrical stimulation since the 1980s. The growing number of potential applications has led to an increasing interest in the development of modeling tools that can help the design of novel electromagnetic stimulators. In this context, the aim of this paper is to provide a versatile calculation framework to investigate the properties of the electric field generated by a plurality of miniature coils, arranged in cuff configuration.

Self-entrainment to optimal gaits of an underactuated biomimetic swimming robot using adaptive frequency oscillators.

Underactuated compliant swimming robots are characterized by a simple mechanical structure, capable to mimic the body undulation of many fish species. One of the design issue for these robots is the generation and control of best performing swimming gaits. In this paper we propose a new controller, based on AFO oscillators, to address this issue.

Swallowable smart pills for local drug delivery: present status and future perspectives.

Smart pills were originally developed for diagnosis; however, they are increasingly being applied to therapy - more specifically drug delivery. In addition to smart drug delivery systems, current research is also looking into localization systems for reaching the target areas, novel locomotion mechanisms and positioning systems. Focusing on the major application fields of such devices, this article reviews smart pills developed for local drug delivery.

Post-human and scientific research: how engineering carried out the project.

We start with a definition of robot in order to understand which are legitimate robotics' objectives. Then it is provided an outline of new robot generations and their industrial and biomedical applications. We consider the consequences of this new kind of technology on the notion of intelligence, stressing how the exteroceptive sensor systems provide a new bottom up approach to the AI debate.

Invasive neural interfaces: the perspective of the surgeon.

Background: By implanting electrodes inside peripheral nerves, amputee's intentions are picked up and exploited to control novel dexterous sensorized hand prostheses. Under the pretext of presenting surgical technique and clinical outcomes of the implant of invasive peripheral neural interfaces in a human amputee, this article critically comments, from the point of view of the surgeon, strengths and weaknesses of the procedure.

Materials And Methods: Four multielectrodes were implanted in the medial and ulnar nerves of a young volunteer, which, following a car-crash, had a left transradial amputation.

Human-robot interaction tests on a novel robot for gait assistance.

This paper presents tests on a treadmill-based non-anthropomorphic wearable robot assisting hip and knee flexion/extension movements using compliant actuation. Validation experiments were performed on the actuators and on the robot, with specific focus on the evaluation of intrinsic backdrivability and of assistance capability. Tests on a young healthy subject were conducted.

Experimental characterization of a flexible thermal slip sensor.

Tactile sensors are needed for effectively controlling the interaction between a robotic hand and the environment, e.g., during manipulation of objects, or for the tactile exploration of unstructured environments, especially when other sensing modalities, such as vision or audition, become ineffective.

Design of a rotary passive viscoelastic joint for wearable robots.

In the design of wearable robots that strictly interact with the human body and, in general, in any robotics application that involves the human component, the possibility of having modular joints able to produce a viscoelastic behaviour is very useful to achieve an efficient and safe human-robot interaction and to give rise to emergent dynamical behaviors. In this paper we propose the design of a compact, passive, rotary viscoelastic joint for assistive wearable robotics applications. The system integrates two functionally distinct sub-modules: one to render a desired torsional stiffness profile and the other to provide a desired torsional damping.

Load-adaptive scaffold architecturing: a bioinspired approach to the design of porous additively manufactured scaffolds with optimized mechanical properties.

Computer-Aided Tissue Engineering (CATE) is based on a set of additive manufacturing techniques for the fabrication of patient-specific scaffolds, with geometries obtained from medical imaging. One of the main issues regarding the application of CATE concerns the definition of the internal architecture of the fabricated scaffolds, which, in turn, influences their porosity and mechanical strength. The present study envisages an innovative strategy for the fabrication of highly optimized structures, based on the a priori finite element analysis (FEA) of the physiological load set at the implant site.

Graph-based methodology for the kinematic synthesis of wearable assistive robots for the lower limbs.

Non-anthropomorphic wearable robots (WRs) give good grounds for expecting advantageous performances over traditional anthropomorphic solutions from both the standpoints of ergonomics and of the dynamical interaction with the human body.

Interfacing insect brain for space applications.

Insects exhibit remarkable navigation capabilities that current control architectures are still far from successfully mimic and reproduce. In this chapter, we present the results of a study on conceptualizing insect/machine hybrid controllers for improving autonomy of exploratory vehicles. First, the different principally possible levels of interfacing between insect and machine are examined followed by a review of current approaches towards hybridity and enabling technologies.

Dispensing an enzyme-conjugated solution into an ELISA plate by adapting ink-jet printers.

The rapid and precise delivery of small volumes of bio-fluids (from picoliters to nanoliters) is a key feature of modern bioanalytical assays. Commercial ink-jet printers are low-cost systems which enable the dispensing of tiny droplets at a rate which may exceed 10(4) Hz per nozzle. Currently, the main ejection technologies are piezoelectric and bubble-jet.

A micro flow-meter for closed-loop management of biological samples.

The closed-loop management of biological samples in μTAS requires proper flow-sensors to be inserted in the hydraulic path. The optimal choice between hybrid mounting and monolithic fabrication depends on several design variables, one of which is the technological compatibility between the sensor and the pumping mechanism. Monolithic integration appears to be the eligible solution if both pumps and sensors can be fabricated with the same technological process.

Complex Ohmic conductance of electrolytes in rectangular microchannels.

Motivated by the interest that microelectrolytic systems are gaining in the development of the so-called lab-on-a-chip systems, i.e., miniature microfluidic devices for biochemical analysis, we present an analytical study of Ohmic conduction in rectangular charged microchannels filled with electrolytic solution.

ac electroosmosis in rectangular microchannels.

Motivated by the growing interest in ac electroosmosis as a reliable no moving parts strategy to control fluid motion in microfluidic devices for biomedical applications, such as lab-on-a-chip, we study transient and steady-state electrokinetic phenomena (electroosmosis and streaming currents) in infinitely extended rectangular charged microchannels. With the aid of Fourier series and Laplace transforms we provide a general formal solution of the problem, which is used to study the time-dependent response to sudden ac applied voltage differences in case of finite electric double layer. The Debye-Huckel approximation has been adopted to allow for an algebraic solution of the Poisson-Boltzmann problem in Fourier space.