Abstract: Movement is an essential
part of human life. An average day flows with thousands of movements, from
rolling out of bed to walking down the stairs to getting into and out of the
car. Many diseases and injuries hinder or are exacerbated by movement.
Osteoarthritis often worsens due to joint loading during movement. Stroke,
spinal cord injury and other neurological disorders inhibit motion and reduce the
sense of movement control. In sports, poor landing and cutting techniques can
tear the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL), and improper running mechanics can
lead to tibial stress fractures.
Wearable haptic feedback
can guide and train human movements to treat disease and prevent injury. This
seminar explores wearable haptics for two important and debilitating diseases: knee osteoarthritis and stroke. Recent research will be
presented involving real-time feedback movement training through wearable
haptic devices, kinematic and kinetic sensing, system control and biomechanical
modeling. Implementation of such systems has enabled knee osteoarthritis
patients to walk with less joint loading and less knee pain and has facilitated
upper extremity rehabilitation for stroke victims.