Development of finger movement assistive gloves with pneumatic fabric actuators

We developed flexible, lightweight, and washable gloves with actuators to assist finger movements and improve ease of wearing. Performance and wearability were measured using standardized tests, triangulation of bending angles, electromyography (EMG), and grip strength. User satisfaction was measure...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Smart materials and structures 2024-08, Vol.33 (8), p.85041
Main Authors: Chung, Jiwon, Yoon, Jeong Eun, Kim, Minseo, Shin, Dongjun, Koo, Sumin
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
EMG
fabric actuator
finger movement
glove
grip strength
pneumatic
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Summary:We developed flexible, lightweight, and washable gloves with actuators to assist finger movements and improve ease of wearing. Performance and wearability were measured using standardized tests, triangulation of bending angles, electromyography (EMG), and grip strength. User satisfaction was measured using a survey. EMG sensors were attached to the flexor digitorum superficialis and extensor digitorum communis to capture movement data for grasping and releasing, lifting and putting down, and opening and closing an object with (a) gloves and an actuator, (b) gloves and no actuator, and (c) no gloves. The actuator-equipped glove weighed 31.4 g—lighter than in any earlier studies. In situation (a), the average EMG values for the four participants decreased, ranging from −2.06% to −44.1%, confirming the superior performance of the gloves. Survey results revealed high levels of user satisfaction. Our study offers insights into the development of rehabilitation robotic gloves that assist muscle movements and are easy to wear.
ISSN:0964-1726
1361-665X
DOI:10.1088/1361-665X/ad63e9