Development of easily wearable assistive device with elastic exoskeleton for paralyzed hand

Numerous robotic devices have been developed to assist hand rehabilitation; however, a majority of these are difficult for stroke survivors to wear. The purpose of this study was to develop an assistive device for treating flexion contracture, which supports the extension of each finger and may easily be worn on a paralyzed hand. To facilitate ease of use, we suggested a new wearing method for this wire-driven device with an elastic skeleton, allowing users to extend the device from the back of the hand onto the fingertip. The functional capacity of this device was measured through fingertip contact force and estimations of supporting torque. Results showed the device provides sufficient torque for finger extension with controlled wire tension. Moreover, experimental results confirmed that the novel design significantly decreased the time it took users to don the device compared to other designs.