Training Model-based Master-slave Rehabilitation Training Strategy using the Phantom Premium and an Exoskeleton Device

Despite the benefits of the robotic technologies on rehabilitation, human involvement is still critical. On the aspect of patients, they also need the supervision of the therapist as well as their active guidance and their expertise. In this paper, a novel master-slave rehabilitation system with force feedback and a meaningful training model for recovering the elbow joint function is presented. In the master side, a commercial product (Phantom Premium) can provide a good haptic feeling combined with a graphic interface to the therapist. Therapists operate the Phantom Premium and adjust the force that an exoskeleton device provides to the patient through a training model at a remote side. A novel method is proposed for the exoskeleton device for generating a variable resistance during the active training to the patient. The principle of the novel method is to create an elastic contact condition between the forearm and the exoskeleton device; consequently the resistance can be easily controlled by adjusting the elastic length. And the control method is proved effectively for minimizing the interaction force between the user and the robot so that the exoskeleton device can follow the motion of the user. At last, two volunteers are requested to imitate the process of the cooperative training for evaluating the proposed training system. Index Terms – Master-slave rehabilitation training, Training model, Haptic device, Exoskeleton device, Series elastic actuator (SEA).