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Robotic Arm Aids in Grasping After Stroke
Posted by
Zonk
on Mon Feb 19, 2007 04:24 AM
from the i've-seen-this-anime dept.
from the i've-seen-this-anime dept.
Roland Piquepaille writes "In the U.S., stroke is a major cause of long-term disability which affects 700,000 people annually. Most of them are over 65 years old and some have difficulties grasping objects after their stroke. This is why Californian researchers have developed a robotic therapy which helps restore hand use after stroke. The Hand-Wrist Assisting Robotic Device (HoWARD) has successfully been tested on seven women and six men who had suffered a stroke at least three months before the study. These results, while encouraging, need to be balanced. There must be enough residual motor power in the arm and hand of stroke patients to initiate some movement for this robotic therapy to work."
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Would you trust this thing (Score:2)
Seriously (Score:3, Insightful)
Sure, general independence is a big issue. However, even if stroke victims have help with many functions such as cooking, dressing, eating etc, being able to do certain things (eg. handle your own genitalia -- sexually or otherwise) at least gives you some sense of self.
A famous personality's contribution (Score:5, Funny)
[FOOT ICON HERE]
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I hear that this version is better than its predecessor, Helpful Artificial Limb (HAL).
- RG>
Misread the title (Score:2)
Misread Your Post (Score:1)
inappropriate maybe... (Score:4, Funny)
Pretty cool (Score:2, Funny)
On a related note, what kind of disease is this [google.com] meant to cure?
Or is this the cause for the stroke in the first place?
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Constipation.
Obligatory (Score:5, Funny)
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Side effects include... blindness.
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Huh?
Ctrl++
Ctrl++
Ctrl++
Oh!
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If you need a robot to help you stroke, you're doing it wrong. If a stroke is beyond your grasp, I am impressed. Alternative title - Robot Arm aids in grasping stroke after stroke.
uh, great... (Score:3, Funny)
That's interesting (Score:5, Interesting)
Quite interesting stuff. It should be a lot cheaper than existing methods where you have highly trained staff spending large amounts of time doing this work. Instead, you get a robot to do it for far less (and cut out trips to the hospital so patients can convalesce at home or in a nursing home).
They also allow precise measurement of the progress you're making. How much force, how accurate your motion, how steady your speed - everything can be recorded and optimised for even better therapies.
I was sitting there listening to everything being explained and thinking about how to do it with a Wiimote but these particular robots aren't passive. They actively move your arm at first because stroke victims don't have the strength. Maybe for milder strokes though.
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They also allow precise measurement of the progress you're making. How much force, how accurate your motion, how steady your speed - everything can be recorded and optimised for even better therapies.
I wouldn't thin
Mechs vs. Meatbot (Score:3, Interesting)
Cheaper way (Score:1)
THE TERRIBLE SECRET OF SPACE (Score:2)
I for one... (Score:3, Funny)
rehab robotics (Score:2)
http://www.rehab.research.va.gov/jour/06/43/5/kre b s.html [va.gov]
http://www.rehab.research.va.gov/jour/05/42/6/macc lellan.html [va.gov]
http://www.freepatentsonline.com/5466213.html [freepatentsonline.com]