Tom De Weyer

Arm training in Multiple Sclerosis using Phantom: Clinical relevance of robotic outcome measures

Upper limb weakness due to Multiple Sclerosis has a major negative effect on the functional activities of the patient. Promising developments in the field of rehabilitation robotics may enable additional exercise. This study aims to investigate which types of robotic outcome measures are clinically relevant, in preparation of the evaluation for intervention studies.Within this context, appropriate movement tasks and tests for the haptic PHANTOM end-effector robot were designed in a virtual environment. These tasks focused on spatial accuracy, object manipulation and speed. Outcome measures were: 1) virtual movement tests, recorded by the robot to quantify motor control; 2) clinical outcome measures such as the Motricity Index, Jamar and MicroFET hand-held dynamometer to evaluate muscle strength; and the Nine Hole Peg Test, Purdue Pegboard, ARAt and TEMPA to asses upper limb function and manual dexterity.10 healthy controls performed the virtual movement tasks using the Phantom as interface. 21 MS subjects with upper limb dysfunction caused by muscle weakness were included in an interventional training study. Pearson correlations were calculated at baseline between the performance on the three virtual movement tasks and the clinical tests on impairment and activity level. The virtual movement tests discriminated between healthy controls and MS patients with hand dysfunction. In the MS patient group, no significant correlations were found between muscle strength tests and virtual movement tasks, while mainly significant correlations were found between specific functional measures (specifically ARAt and Purdue pegboard test) and virtual movement tasks.

Watering the flowers: virtual haptic environments for training of forearm rotation in persons with central nervous deficits

Persons with central nervous deficits, such as MS and stroke patients, can benefit a lot from suitable training approaches that enhance their ability to perform activities in daily life. As performing rotations with the forearm (pro- and supination movements) is essential in many daily tasks, we use this as an example to illustrate our structured rehabilitation approach for the upper extremities. The results of the patient-centric design and development of the rehabilitation robotics system are illustrated, and several levels of interactive training exercises in virtual haptic environments are shown. Considerations regarding the system setup as well as hardware adjustments to the haptic device and peripheral equipment are described. Evaluations with patients and therapists demonstrate the importance of the patient-centric approach and reveal appreciation for the resulting interactive training system.

Data Management for Multimodal Rehabilitation Games

Rehabilitation games form a promising type of serious games. The goal is to provide the patients with a personalized training. In order to realize this, much information must be handled. This includes general information about the games and parameters regarding modalities, and specific information about the patients and their therapy sessions. Therapists must be able to specify the values for all parameters involved. However, different levels of these parameters should be grouped in a sensible manner in order not to overwhelm the therapists with too much and too detailed information. This paper discusses a system for the rehabilitation of Multiple Sclerosis patients and explains how the information can be managed by the therapists.

3DUI 2010 Contest Grand Prize Winners

The 2010 IEEE Symposium on 3D User Interfaces ran the symposiums first 3DUI Grand Prize, a contest for innovative, practical solutions to classic 3DUI problems. The authors describe the rationale for the first contest and give an analysis of all submissions. Each categorys winners also discuss their solutions.

HeatMeUp: A 3DUI serious game to explore collaborative wayfinding

Wayfinding inside a virtual environment is a cognitive process during navigation. Normally the user inside the virtual environment has to rely on himself and different cues such as waypoints to improve his knowledge with regard to his surroundings. In this paper we will present our solution for the 3DUI Contest 2012: Heat-MeUP, a 3DUI serious game to explore collaborative alternatives, in which a partner is responsible for providing wayfinding cues. The game is set in a multi-storey building where several fires and gas leaks occur and a firefighter has to overcome several challenges, guided by a fire chief.

The impact of robot-mediated adaptive I-TRAVLE training on impaired upper limb function in chronic stroke and multiple sclerosis

Abstract Purpose: The current study aimed to investigate proof-of-concept efficacy of an individualized, robot-mediated training regime for people with MS (pwMS) and stroke patients. Method: Thirteen pwMS and 14 chronic stroke patients performed 36 (stroke) or 40 (pwMS) training sessions with the I-TRAVLE system. Evaluation of upper limb function was performed at baseline, after training and at 3 months follow-up. Clinical outcome measures consisted of active range of motion (ROM), Motricity Index, Jamar handgrip strength, perceived fatigue and strength, Wolf Motor Function Test (WFMT) and ABILHAND. Robot-generated outcome measures consisted of movement velocity, ROM and actual covered distance compared to straight-line distance. Results: In pwMS, significant improvements were found after training in active shoulder ROM, handgrip strength, perceived strength and WMFT activities. No significant change in clinical outcome was found in stroke patients, except for perceived strength. Significant improvement in speed and movement duration was found after training in both groups. At follow-up, clinical outcome deteriorated in pwMS and was maintained in stroke patients. Conclusions: Robot-mediated training resulted in improved movement coordination in both groups, as well as clinical improvement in pwMS. Absence of functional improvements in stroke patients may relate to severe upper limb dysfunction at baseline. Implications for Rehabilitation Robot-mediated training improved strength, active range of motion and upper limb capacity in pwMS. Robot-mediated therapy allows for adapted training difficulty.

ICOME: An Immersive Collaborative 3D Object Modelling Environment

In most existing immersive virtual environments, 3D geometry is imported from external packages. Within ICOME (an Immersive Collaborative 3D Object Modelling Environment) we focus on the immersive construction of 3D geometrical objects within the environment itself. Moreover, the framework allows multiple people to simultaneously undertake 3D modelling tasks in a collaborative way. This article describes the overall architecture, which conceptually follows a client/server approach. The various types of clients, which are implemented, are described in detail. Some illustrative 3D object modelling examples are given. Extensions to the system with regard to 3D audio are also mentioned.

ReHappy: The House Elf that serves your Rehabilitation Exercises

Intense and frequent motor training is essential in persons with neurological disorders as there are MS and stroke. Technology-based rehabilitation has been proven to be beneficial for specific patient groups, as it shows to be effective on muscle strength and active range of motion of the upper limbs. Personalized training in technology-supported rehabilitation setups using motivational techniques such as serious games have the potential to make repetitive training efforts more endurable. Most neurological rehabilitation approaches suffer from a strict separation between training scenarios and activities in daily living, but have difficulties to bridge the gap between exercising on a functional level and performing on the level of activities in daily living. To improve the integration of motor skill training in a daily living context we propose an approach and proof-of-concept implementation of the training device ReHappy, a tangible character that engages patient in performing additional training that complements the daily activities.

Integrating Serious Games and Tangible Objects for Functional Handgrip Training: A User Study of Handly in Persons with Multiple Sclerosis.

We present Handly, an integrated upper-limb rehabilitation system for persons with a neurological disorder. Handly consists of tangibles for training four hand tasks with specific functional handgrips and a motivational game. These persons need intensive personalized therapy in order to sustain or enhance their abilities and aptitude in daily activities. Conventional approaches require intense support by a therapist or usage of expensive robots, both of which are not a sustainable model of training. Handly combines tangibles specifically designed for repetitive task-oriented motor skill training of typical daily activities with serious gaming, thus offering a comprehensive approach. A feedback mechanism guides the user and an accessible game environment stimulates individual training. We performed an initial evaluation of Handly with eight persons with Multiple Sclerosis. We show that a tangible-virtual environment for intensive upper-limb rehabilitation is feasible and that this approach is highly appreciated by the patients.

Smart camera SoC system for interactive real-time real-brush based digital painting systems

Advanced digital paint systems, based on accurate simulation models for the paint, brush and canvas interaction enable a virtual painting environment familiar to artists, but also allow for new ways of expressivity. The new FluidPaint co-located real-brush-input & canvas-display systems put extremely high demands on the real-time image processing and the reaction time between brush strokes and the rendering of the painting result on the screen. A new Smart Camera System-on-Chip (SoC) architecture is presented enabling real-time input of brush-strokes with real brushes in the FluidPaint digital painting system.