Abstract
Emerging microelectromechanical system (MEMS)-based sensors become much more applicable for on-body measurement purposes lately. Especially, the development of a finger tip-sized tri-axial force sensor gives the opportunity to measure interaction forces between the human hand and environmental objects. We have developed a new prototype device that allows simultaneous 3D force and movement measurements at the finger and thumb tips. The combination of interaction forces and movements makes it possible to identify the dynamical characteristics of the object being handled by the hand. With this device attached to the hand, a subject manipulated mass and spring objects under varying conditions. We were able to identify and estimate the weight of two physical mass objects (0.44 kg: and 0.28 kg: ) and the spring constant of a physical spring object (). The system is a first attempt to quantify the interactions of the hand with the environment and has many potential applications in rehabilitation, ergonomics and sports.
Highlights
A prosperous recovery of arm and hand function after a neuromuscular accident requires adequate training of reach and grasp tasks
The z-component is primarily determined by the gravitational force exerted on the mass load because inertial accelerations were not dominant compared to the gravitational acceleration acting in the vertical (z) direction
Body-worn unobtrusive sensing systems are of utmost importance for interaction measurements in activities of daily living (ADL) tasks
Summary
A prosperous recovery of arm and hand function after a neuromuscular accident requires adequate training of reach and grasp tasks. A full evaluation of motor task performance during grasp movements requires, besides kinematic, kinetic measures Gathering both kinematic and kinetic measures allows for a full dynamic evaluation of tasks in terms of, e.g., movement trajectory, exerted forces, power exchange and the identification of load and body dynamics. Such measures give much more detailed information of the subject’s performance compared to solely movement registration and, allow for more specific clinical outcomes
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