1,721,010 research outputs found
Stiffness control of biomimetic systems through recruitment of bundle elastomeric actuators
No full textOptimal exploratory paths for a mobile rover
No full textWe consider the problem of maximizing the localization accuracy of a mobile vehicle, based on triangulation measurements derived from optical data. The problem is intrinsically nonlinear, as the linear approximation of the system is not observable. This implies that the choice of inputs (i.e., the path followed) may affect the quality of observations made, and ultimately the localization accuracy. We consider the problem of finding the most informative exploratory path of the given length for a rover (modeled as a point in the plane) with optical triangulation information
Body Segment Position Reconstruction and Posture Classification by Smart Textiles
No full textTextile-based transducers are an innovative category of devices that use conductive fibres meshed with elastic textile fabrics. Within this paper, a new class of strain sensors, which represents an excellent trade-off between figures of merit in mechano-electrical transduction and possibility of integration in textiles, is presented. Electrically conductive elastomer composites show piezo-resistive properties when a deformation is applied. Conductive elastomer can be applied to fabric or to other flexible substrate and they can be employed as strain sensors. We integrated conductive elastomer sensors into fabrics to realize wearable kinaesthetic garments able to detect posture and movement of a user. This paper deals with the design, the development and realization of a set of sensing garments, from the characterization of innovative textile-based sensors to the methodologies employed to gather information on the posture and movement from the entire garments. Data deriving from the prototypes are analysed and compared with those deriving from a traditional movement tracking system. The realized kinaesthetic garments have shown very promising performance in terms of body segment position reconstruction and posture classification
Dispositivi per il monitoraggio di forme di oggetti tridimensionali, campi di deformazione di substrati flessibili (elastici e non) e loro realizzazione con sensorizzazione integrata
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Assessment of a Smart Sensing Shoe for Gait Phase Detection in Level Walking
Full text linkGait analysis and more specifically ambulatory monitoring of temporal and spatial gait parameters may open relevant fields of applications in activity tracking, sports and also in the assessment and treatment of specific diseases. Wearable technology can boost this scenario by spreading the adoption of monitoring systems to a wide set of healthy users or patients. In this context, we assessed a recently developed commercial smart shoe—the FootMoov—for automatic gait phase detection in level walking. FootMoov has built-in force sensors and a triaxial accelerometer and is able to transmit the sensor data to the smartphone through a wireless connection. We developed a dedicated gait phase detection algorithm relying both on force and inertial information. We tested the smart shoe on ten healthy subjects in free level walking conditions and in a laboratory setting in comparison with an optical motion capture system. Results confirmed a reliable detection of the gait phases. The maximum error committed, on the order of 44.7 ms, is comparable with previous studies. Our results confirmed the possibility to exploit consumer wearable devices to extract relevant parameters to improve the subject health or to better manage his/her progressions
Wearable systems for e-health: Telemonitoring and telerehabilitation
No full textRecent R&D solutions for e-health and m-health in terms of wearables offer new, sophisticated devices and systems, which might transform healthcare delivery through telemonitoring and telerehabilitation. In this paper the authors briefly introduce the field and the socioeconomic driving forces behind its rapid development. Wearable devices and systems developed at the authors' laboratories are briefly described with emphasis given to cardiopulmonary monitoring and remote post-stroke neuromuscular telerehabilitation
From sensitive textile to distributed wearable sensors
No full textOur previous work has shown that elastic textiles covered with an epitaxial layer of conducting polymer show piezoresistive properties. They can be used to fabricate sensorized garments such as gloves, leotards, socks and seat covers as man-machine interfaces. A purposely designed screen printing process has been implemented to realize sensors/tracks patterns. Polypyrrole/lycra fabrics were prepared using the method developed by Milliken Co. (Spartanburg, USA). The epitaxial deposition is obtained controlling the concentrations of monomer and the temperature of the reaction medium. Investigation on mechanoelectric transduction properties (static and dynamic) of the fabrics, calibration of wearable sensing devices and ongoing R&D efforts in multimedia, sport and rehabilitation fields are reported
A bi-articular model for scapular-humeral rhythm reconstruction through data from wearable sensors
Full text linkPatient-specific performance assessment of arm movements in daily life activities is fundamental for neurological rehabilitation therapy. In most applications, the shoulder movement is simplified through a socket-ball joint, neglecting the movement of the scapular-thoracic complex. This may lead to significant errors. We propose an innovative bi-articular model of the human shoulder for estimating the position of the hand in relation to the sternum. The model takes into account both the scapular-toracic and gleno-humeral movements and their ratio governed by the scapular-humeral rhythm, fusing the information of inertial and textile-based strain sensors
Stiffness and compliance control in dynamical systems driven by muscle-like actuators
No full textThis work reports on the design and the feed forward stiffness control of bioinspired kinematic chains from a static and a dynamic point of view. While position control is clearly referred to common geometrical lagrangian coordinates for the considered system, in order to deal with the stiffness or compliance of the chain, especially in dynamic cases, global and less intuitive variables have to be defined and used. The advantage deriving from a similar control strategy can be important when the chain is part of a complex dynamic system or the computational resources are scarce. By defining and controlling stiffness or compliance for a certain position or trajectory, we can state that, even if the system is not continuously monitored in closed loop, a bounded perturbation cannot produce equilibrium point or trajectory variations greater than a fixed quantity. In a closed loop control strategy, the described methodology can be implemented during the time between two consecutive output sampling and feedback inputs. On the other hand, compliance control permits a kinematic chain to interact with objects without causing damages even if errors in position occur. In this work, the compliance and stiffness concepts, inspired to common reasoning in biological motor control theory, are generalized to a dynamic case and endowed with a mathematical architecture
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