Universal Haptic Drive: A Robot for Arm and Wrist Rehabilitation

In this paper we present a universal haptic drive (UHD), a device that enables rehabilitation of either arm (“ARM” mode) or wrist (“WRIST” mode) movement in two degrees-of-freedom. The mode of training depends on the selected mechanical configuration, which depends on locking/unlocking of a passive universal joint. Actuation of the device is accomplished by utilizing a series elastic actuation principle, which enables use of off-the-shelf mechanical and actuation components. A proportional force control scheme, needed for implementation of impedance control based movement training, was implemented. The device performance in terms of achievable lower and upper bound of viable impedance range was evaluated through adequately chosen sinusoidal movement in eight directions of a planar movement for the “ARM” mode and in eight directions of a combined wrist flexion/extension and forearm pronation/supination movement for the “WRIST” mode. Additionally, suitability of the universal haptic drive for movement training was tested in a series of training sessions conducted with a chronic stroke subject. The results have shown that reliable and repeatable performance can be achieved in both modes of operation for all tested directions.