Voice-Controlled Flexible Exotendon (FLEXotendon) Glove For Hand Rehabilitation

In this work, we propose a voice-controlled hand rehabilitation device driven by exotendons. A smartphone-based voice recognition system interprets user intention and is utilized for various grasping tasks. A bio-inspired tendon routing mechanism provides four-degrees-of-freedom (DoFs) across the thumb, index finger, and middle finger. A novel thumb sleeve design is presented for stable thumb movement. The exoskeleton is fabricated from polyurethane rubber and rigid 3D-printed parts to provide form-fitting properties while constraining tendon motion. Twisted string actuators and spring units provide active flexion and passive extension, respectively. The compact nature of the actuation unit allows for placement on the forearm, improving the portability of the system. The voice control system allows for easy user manipulation and accessibility and may improve rehabilitation efficiency. The performance of the tendon routing and thumb sleeve design were experimentally evaluated and voice control system was evaluated with various grasping tests.