Mechanical Design of an Assistive Robotic System for Bilateral Elbow Tendinopathy Rehabilitation

Abstract

: Diseases related to upper limb mobility are increasingly common among the actual population. For this reason, robotic physical assistive systems have been proposed to support therapy processes and improve the functional capabilities of people. However, there are still open issues related to mechanical design, such as joint coupling and bidirectional configurations. In this work, we present a novel design of a 7 DoF robotic assistive system with anthropometric adjustment, arm change configuration for elbow tendinopathies rehabilitation to use it in both arms. The design is supported by the analysis of the upper limb pathophysiology and the exercises required to treat elbow tendinopathies.