EMG-based human-robot interface for rehabilitation aid

This paper proposes the concept of a human-robot interface as rehabilitation aid and develops the prototype system. The prototype system aims to be used as a controller for the robotic manipulator and as rehabilitation system for the handicapped person. In order to adapt the system to the characteristics of the operator's electromyogram (EMG) signal, the EMG pattern discrimination method using the neural network is utilized as an essential technique of our system. In the experiments, it can be seen that the robotic manipulator can be controlled with high accuracy using the operator's EMG signal, and that the adaptive learning of the neural network improves the discrimination ability of the EMG signal. The rehabilitation program and biofeedback are also discussed.