Design and evaluation of Rheumatoid Arthritis rehabilitative Device (RARD) for laterally bent fingers

This paper presents the design and evaluation of a soft-robotic exoskeleton, RARD, for the rehabilitation of arthritis affected individuals with laterally deformed fingers due to Heberden's nodes and Bouchard's nodes. The exoskeleton operates using two 3D-printed soft pneumatic elastomeric actuators that are flexible to conform to the curvature of the deformity when not pressurized. Upon pressurization, the actuators can generate sufficient force to overcome the stiffness of the deformed fingers to realign them straight, allowing for progressive rehabilitation. Experimental study was performed on the designed pneumatic actuators to characterize its maximum bending force output from the pressure input. Additionally, the effectiveness of the exoskeleton was evaluated using a human mannequin hand with the simulated deformity. The soft-robotic exoskeleton has been demonstrated to be a promising rehabilitative device for treating laterally deformed digits on the hands.