Virtual Rehabilitation System Research Articles

A benchmarked automated progress measurement system for haptic motor rehabilitation

As Haptic devices become more affordable and economical, research in Haptic-based virtual rehabilitation systems is gaining more interest. In addition to the benefits provided by virtual rehabilitation, Haptics offer force and tactile feedback which can be crucial for much upper and lower extremity rehabilitation. In this paper, we present such a system that provides a rich media environment for motor rehabilitation of stroke patients. The system can be used by Occupational Therapists (OTs) to measure and monitor the progress of rehab patients. This is an expanded version of a paper presented at the 3rd IEEE International Workshop on Medical Measurements and Applications, 9 10 May 2008, Ottawa, ON, Canada.

TheraGame: A home based virtual reality rehabilitation system

The limitations of existing virtual reality (VR) systems in terms of their use for home-based VR therapy led us to develop “TheraGame”, a novel video capture VR system. TheraGame operates on a standard PC with a simple webcam. The software is programmed using a Javabased visual interaction system. This system enables a quick and easy definition of virtual objects and their behavior. The user sits in front of the monitor, sees himself and uses his movements to interact with the virtual objects. The objective of this presentation is to present the system, a number of the current applications, and some initial pilot usage results. Results from a study of 12 healthy elderly subjects showed moderate to high levels of enjoyment and usability. These scores were also high as reported by 4 participants with neurological deficits. Some limitations in system functionality were reported by one person with stroke who used TheraGame at home for a period of 2.5 weeks. Overall, TheraGame appears to have considerable potential for home based rehabilitation.

Poster 31: Examining Usability of a Virtual Reality Driving Simulator

Objective: To examine aspects of usability, user feedback, and user comfort of a newly developed Virtual Reality Driver Rehabilitation (VR-DR) system. Design: Between-group comparison. All participants drove through a virtual environment using the VR-DR and completed the VR-DR User Feedback Questionnaire. Setting: Medical rehabilitation research facility. Participants: 54 participants in total. 33 subjects with acquired brain injury (20 with traumatic brain injury [TBI], 13 with cerebrovascular accident [CVA]) and 21 healthy controls (HC).

Assessment of various display devices on a virtual reality-based hand rehabilitation system

The purpose of the present study is to assess the effect of an auxiliary lateral image and display devices on manipulation performance in a virtual reality-based hand rehabilitation system. The system consists of a personal computer, a tracker, a data glove, and a display device. For this study, a projector, a monitor, and a head-mounted display were respectively used as the display devices to present three-dimensional virtual environments. Twelve volunteers were recruited to take a pick-and-place procedure at different levels of difficulty. Task time and collision frequency were the parameters used to evaluate the manipulation performance. It was found that the presence of an auxiliary lateral image was a significant factor only for the performance of the projector group and the monitor group. In addition, no statistically significant difference was found in the comparison between the projector group and the monitor group.

The study of auditory and haptic signals in a virtual reality-based hand rehabilitation system

The purpose of the present study is to assess the influence of auditory and haptic signals on the manipulation performance in a virtual reality-based hand rehabilitation system. A personal computer, a tracker, and a data glove were included in this system. Three-dimensional virtual environments were developed. Forty volunteers were recruited to participate in a pick-and-place procedure, with three levels of difficulty and four feedback modes. Task time and collision frequency were the parameters used to evaluate their manipulation performance. It can be concluded that the haptics is a significant signal for improving a subject's performance at the high difficulty level.