The Neural Control of Movement (NCM) Lab in collaboration with the Rehabilitation Engineering Lab (RELab) is developing a wearable wrist exoskeleton with sEMG-based force control. While the measurement and analysis of residual sEMG signals in the patient's forearm provide information on the movement intention, a torque measurement at the wrist allows to apply the adequate mechanical support in order to enhance the rehabilitation process. Conceptually one might think about the operation principle of an electric bike which starts contributing to the effort only when the rider presses on the pedal. As a proof of concept, we developed the eWrist, a wearable one degree-of-freedom powered exoskeleton for the wrist.
This project will be to implement an "assist-as-needed" controller on the eWrist.
The Neural Control of Movement (NCM) Lab in collaboration with the Rehabilitation Engineering Lab (RELab) is developing a wearable wrist exoskeleton with sEMG-based force control. While the measurement and analysis of residual sEMG signals in the patient's forearm provide information on the movement intention, a torque measurement at the wrist allows to apply the adequate mechanical support in order to enhance the rehabilitation process. Conceptually one might think about the operation principle of an electric bike which starts contributing to the effort only when the rider presses on the pedal. As a proof of concept, we developed the eWrist, a wearable one degree-of-freedom powered exoskeleton for the wrist.
This project will be to implement an "assist-as-needed" controller on the eWrist.
At the moment, a final working version of the exoskeleton is about to be finished. However, a prototype where the controller can be tested is available. On this prototype, an admittance controller including sEMG signals is implemented. The next step will be to implement an "assist-as-needed" controller (i.e. which assists wrist movement with the minimal mechanical support required to complete a task) that combines sEMG signals and force measurement. Also, as the exoskeleton is wearable, an IMU measures its attitude which allows to adapt the assistance relative to gravity. This also needs to be implemented within the controller.
The real-time controller runs on a Teensy 3.2 microcontroller (Arduino IDE) and communicates over serial with a Raspberry Pi Zero.
**Tasks**
- implementation of a controller which combines sEMG signals from the forearm, force measurement at the wrist and IMU signals.
- test sessions of the controller with healthy users.
**Your Profile**
- self-organized and independent
- disciplined
- reliable
better to have:
- experience in control
- experience in programming (C++ and Python)
nice to have:
- experience in mechatronics
- experience in rehabilitation
At the moment, a final working version of the exoskeleton is about to be finished. However, a prototype where the controller can be tested is available. On this prototype, an admittance controller including sEMG signals is implemented. The next step will be to implement an "assist-as-needed" controller (i.e. which assists wrist movement with the minimal mechanical support required to complete a task) that combines sEMG signals and force measurement. Also, as the exoskeleton is wearable, an IMU measures its attitude which allows to adapt the assistance relative to gravity. This also needs to be implemented within the controller. The real-time controller runs on a Teensy 3.2 microcontroller (Arduino IDE) and communicates over serial with a Raspberry Pi Zero.
**Tasks**
- implementation of a controller which combines sEMG signals from the forearm, force measurement at the wrist and IMU signals. - test sessions of the controller with healthy users.
**Your Profile**
- self-organized and independent - disciplined - reliable
better to have:
- experience in control - experience in programming (C++ and Python)
nice to have:
- experience in mechatronics - experience in rehabilitation
Submit your letter of motivation, a CV and a record of your studies to:
Charles Lambelet
Neural Control of Movement Lab, NCM Lab
ETH Zürich
charles.lambelet@hest.ethz.ch
http://www.ncm.hest.ethz.ch/
Submit your letter of motivation, a CV and a record of your studies to: