Fraunhofer-Institut für Produktionsanlagen und Konstruktionstechnik IPK

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  • Publication
    Gait rehabilitation machines based on programmable footplates
    ( 2007)
    Schmidt, H.
    ;
    Werner, C.
    ;
    Bernhardt, R.
    ;
    Hesse, S.
    ;
    Krüger, J.
    Background: Gait restoration is an integral part of rehabilitation of brain lesioned patients. Modern concepts favour a task-specific repetitive approach, i.e. who wants to regain walking has to walk, while tone-inhibiting and gait preparatory manoeuvres had dominated therapy before. Following the first mobilization out of the bed, the wheelchair-bound patient should have the possibility to practise complex gait cycles as soon as possible. Steps in this direction were treadmill training with partial body weight support and most recently gait machines enabling the repetitive training of even surface gait and even of stair climbing. Results: With treadmill training harness-secured and partially relieved wheelchair-mobilised patients could practise up to 1000 steps per session for the first time. Controlled trials in stroke and SCI patients, however, failed to show a superior result when compared to walking exercise on the floor. Most likely explanation was the effort for the therapists, e. g. manually setting the paretic limbs during the swing phase resulting in a too little gait intensity. The next steps were gait machines, either consisting of a powered exoskeleton and a treadmill (Lokomat, AutoAmbulator) or an electromechanical solution with the harness secured patient placed on movable foot plates (Gait Trainer GT I). For the latter, a large multi-centre trial with 155 non-ambulatory stroke patients (DEGAS) revealed a superior gait ability and competence in basic activities of living in the experimental group. The HapticWalker continued the end effector concept of movable foot plates, now fully programmable and equipped with 6 DOF force sensors. This device for the first time enables training of arbitrary walking situations, hence not only the simulation of floor walking but also for example of stair climbing and perturbations. Conclusion: Locomotor therapy is a fascinating new tool in rehabilitation, which is in line with modern principles of motor relearning promoting a task-specific repetitive approach. Sophisticated technical developments and positive randomized controlled trials form the basis of a growing acceptance worldwide to the benefits or our patients.
  • Publication
    Gait machines and robots to support motor rehabilitation after stroke
    ( 2007)
    Schmidt, H.
    ;
    Hussein, S.
    ;
    Werner, C.
    ;
    Bernhardt, R.
    ;
    Hesse, S.
    ;
    Krüger, J.
    The group at Klinik Berlin/Charite University Hospital in Berlin, Germany, began studies to promote motor recovery after stroke in the early 1990s. Following the introduction of treadmill training with partial body-weight support, the group designed an electromechanical gait trainer, GT I, based on movable foot plates that relieve therapist effort (e.g., when assisting the movement of the paretic limbs) and intensify patient gait training (GT). Preliminary results of a recent multicenter trial of 155 acute stroke patients showed that the GT I effectively promotes gait ability and competence in activities of daily living. The experimental group received 20 min of GT and 25 min of physiotherapy (PT) and the control group received 45 min of PT every day for 4 weeks. The laboratory's next step was the HapticWalker, a robotic walking simulator with freely programmable foot plates which was designed and built in close collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute IPK. On this machine patients can, for example, additionally train for stair climbing and perturbations. The foot plates can be operated in full guidance or compliance control modes, thus reducing foot support according to the patient's learning success. Entnommen aus TEMA
  • Publication
    Machines and robots to support motor rehabilitation after stroke
    ( 2007)
    Schmidt, H.
    ;
    Werner, C.
    ;
    Bernhardt, R.
    ;
    Hesse, S.
    ;
    Krüger, J.
  • Publication
    Intelligent assist systems for flexible assembly
    ( 2006)
    Krüger, J.
    ;
    Bernhardt, R.
    ;
    Surdilovic, D.
    The growing number of product variants, smaller lot sizes, reduced time to market and shorter lifecycles of products have lead to increasing demands on automation equipment and concepts. As a solution, hybrid human integrated approaches are proposed. The idea is to combine human flexibility, intelligence and skills with the advantages of sophisticated technical systems. Intelligent assist systems (IAS) represent a novel class of assembly systems capable of working with human operators in two modes: workplace sharing and time sharing. This paper presents a novel collaborative robot system ("Cobot") capable of sharing the workspace with the human co-worker and collaborating with him through direct physical contact.
  • Publication
    Synthesis of perturbations for gait rehabilitation robots
    ( 2005)
    Schmidt, H.
    ;
    Piorko, F.
    ;
    Bernhardt, R.
    ;
    Krüger, J.
    ;
    Hesse, S.
    Perturbations are an important measure to improve gait training and to investigate the the learning success of stroke patients during rehabilitation. This paper describes the development and implementation of algorithms for the synthesis of perturbations during gait training on a robotic walking simulator. The perturbation algorithm performs an automatic on-line adaptation of the robot motion override. Hence, it is independent from the type of motion interpolation which the robot motion is based on. Perturbations we have implemented so far include stumbling, i.e. hitting an obstacle during swing phase, and slipping, i.e. sliding on an obstacle during stance phase. An additional catch-up control algorithm ensures that both feet will regain synchronous motion again after the event. The algorithms have been implemented in the control software of the HapticWalker, a programmable footplate based human walking simulator for gait rehabilitation, which we have developed. So far a number of healthy subjects have successfully tested the algorithms on the simulator. Clinical trials will follow.