Chair of Robotics and Systems Intelligence, MIRMI-Munich Institute of Robotics and Machine Intelligence, Technical University of Munich (TUM), formerly MSRM, Munich, Germany.
Centre for Tactile Internet with Human-in-the-Loop (CeTI), Dresden, Germany.
J Neuroeng Rehabil. 2022 Apr 29;19(1):41. doi: 10.1186/s12984-022-01016-4.
Existing assistive technologies attempt to mimic biological functions through advanced mechatronic designs. In some occasions, the information processing demands for such systems require substantial information bandwidth and convoluted control strategies, which make it difficult for the end-user to operate. Instead, a practical and intuitive semi-automated system focused on accomplishing daily tasks may be more suitable for end-user adoption.
We developed an intelligent prosthesis for the Cybathlon Global Edition 2020. The device was designed in collaboration with the prosthesis user (pilot), addressing her needs for the competition and aiming for functionality. Our design consists of a soft robotic-based two finger gripper controlled by a force-sensing resistor (FSR) headband interface, automatic arm angle dependent wrist flexion and extension, and manual forearm supination and pronation for a shared control system. The gripper is incorporated with FSR sensors to relay haptic information to the pilot based on the output of a neural network model that estimates geometries and objects material.
As a student team of the Munich Institute of Robotics and Machine Intelligence, we achieved 12th place overall in the Cybathlon competition in which we competed against state-of-the-art prosthetic devices. Our pilot successfully accomplished two challenging tasks in the competition. During training sessions, the pilot was able to accomplish the remaining competition tasks except for one. Based on observation and feedback from training sessions, we adapted our developments to fit the user's preferences. Usability ratings indicated that the pilot perceived the prosthesis to not be fully ergonomic due to the size and weight of the system, but argued that the prosthesis was intuitive to control to perform the tasks from the Cybathlon competition.
The system provides an intuitive interface to conduct common daily tasks from the arm discipline of the Cybathlon competition. Based on the feedback from our pilot, future improvements include the prosthesis' reduction in size and weight in order to enhance its mobility. Close collaboration with our pilot has allowed us to continue with the prosthesis development. Ultimately, we developed a simple-to-use solution, exemplifying a new paradigm for prosthesis design, to help assist arm amputees with daily activities.
现有的辅助技术试图通过先进的机电设计来模拟生物功能。在某些情况下，这些系统的信息处理需求需要大量的信息带宽和复杂的控制策略，这使得最终用户难以操作。相反，专注于完成日常任务的实用和直观的半自动系统可能更适合最终用户采用。
我们为 2020 年全球 Cybathlon 版开发了一种智能义肢。该设备是与义肢使用者（飞行员）合作设计的，满足了她对比赛的需求，并致力于实现功能。我们的设计由一个基于软机器人的两指夹具组成，由力感应电阻（FSR）头带接口控制，自动依赖手臂角度的腕关节弯曲和伸展，以及手动前臂旋前和旋后，用于共享控制系统。夹具内装有 FSR 传感器，根据神经网络模型的输出，将触觉信息传递给飞行员，该模型估计几何形状和物体材料。
作为慕尼黑机器人与机器智能研究所的学生团队，我们在 Cybathlon 比赛中获得了第 12 名，与最先进的假肢设备竞争。我们的飞行员在比赛中成功完成了两项具有挑战性的任务。在训练过程中，飞行员除了一项任务外，还能够完成其余的比赛任务。根据观察和训练反馈，我们对开发工作进行了调整，以适应用户的偏好。可用性评分表明，由于系统的大小和重量，飞行员认为该义肢不完全符合人体工程学，但认为该义肢易于控制，能够完成 Cybathlon 比赛中的任务。
该系统提供了一个直观的接口，用于进行 Cybathlon 比赛的手臂训练任务。根据我们飞行员的反馈，未来的改进包括减小义肢的大小和重量，以提高其机动性。与我们的飞行员密切合作，使我们能够继续进行义肢的开发。最终，我们开发了一种简单易用的解决方案，为义肢设计树立了新的典范，帮助手臂截肢者完成日常活动。
