Diseño e implementación de un prototipo de exoesqueleto destinado a la rehabilitación de codo

Abstract

Nowadays, health services strive to provide optimal rehabilitation therapies for people who have suffered a stroke or some kind of accident that could cause paralysis or loss of strength in an upper limb. This has motivated the scientific community to explore the use of electronic devices (exoskeleton) to provide rehabilitation therapies and/or assistance to the movement.This project presents an alternative to conventional rehabilitation therapies, through a prototype exoskeleton for upper limb (elbow). This prototype is focused on improving strength and motor movement of the limb. The exoskeleton consists of two degrees of freedom, allowing them to strengthen flexion-extension movements between the arm and forearm, and pronation-supination movements of the forearm. The prototype designed allows patient mobility while doing therapy, because the structure is not a fixed base. The exoskeleton has a standard measure, therefore difficult to fit different lengths of the extremity of patients, however, after being evaluated by a specialist in physical therapy, it is useful for patients with neurological problems because it allows a passive-assisted rehabilitation and for patients with orthopedic problems allows active-assisted rehabilitation.