Department of Health Science and Technology, Aalborg University, Frederik Bajers Vej 7D, 9220, Aalborg Ø, Denmark.
J Neural Eng. 2020 Aug 14;17(4):046034. doi: 10.1088/1741-2552/aba4fd.
Artificial proprioceptive feedback from a myoelectric prosthesis is an important aspect in enhancing embodiment and user satisfaction, possibly lowering the demand for visual attention while controlling a prosthesis in everyday tasks. Contemporary myoelectric prostheses are advanced mechatronic systems with multiple degrees of freedom, and therefore, to communicate the prosthesis state, the feedback interface needs to transmit several variables simultaneously. In the present study, two different configurations for conveying proprioceptive information of wrist rotation and hand aperture through multichannel electrotactile stimulation were developed and evaluated during online myoelectric control.
Myoelectric recordings were acquired from the dominant forearm and electrotactile stimulation was delivered on the non-dominant forearm using a compact interface. The first feedback configuration, which was based on spatial coding, transmitted the information using a moving tactile stimulus, whereas the second, amplitude-based configuration conveyed the position via sensation intensity. Thirteen able-bodied subjects used pattern classification-based myoelectric control with both feedback configurations to accomplish a target-reaching task.
High task performance (completion rate > 90%) was observed for both configurations, with no significant difference in completion rate, time to reach the target, distance error and path efficiency, respectively.
Overall, the results demonstrated that both feedback configurations allowed subjects to perceive and interpret two feedback variables delivered simultaneously, despite using a compact stimulation interface. This is an encouraging result for the prospect of communicating the full state of a multifunctional hand prosthesis.
从肌电假体中获得人工本体感觉反馈是增强存在感和用户满意度的重要方面，在日常任务中控制假体时可能会降低对视觉注意力的需求。当代肌电假肢是具有多个自由度的先进机电系统，因此，为了传达假肢状态，反馈接口需要同时传输几个变量。在本研究中，开发并评估了两种通过多通道电触觉刺激传达手腕旋转和手开口本体感觉信息的不同配置，用于在线肌电控制。
使用紧凑型接口从优势前臂采集肌电记录，并在非优势前臂上进行电触觉刺激。第一种反馈配置基于空间编码，使用移动触觉刺激传输信息，而第二种基于幅度的配置则通过感觉强度传达位置。13 名健全受试者使用基于模式分类的肌电控制和这两种反馈配置来完成目标到达任务。
两种配置都观察到了高任务完成率（完成率>90%），在完成率、到达目标的时间、距离误差和路径效率方面没有显著差异。
总的来说，结果表明，尽管使用了紧凑型刺激接口，但这两种反馈配置都允许受试者感知和解释同时传递的两个反馈变量。这对于传达多功能手假肢的完整状态来说是一个令人鼓舞的结果。
