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Elbow joint rehabilitation presents a formidable challenge, underscored by the joint's complex biomechanics and high vulnerability to injuries and degenerative conditions. Despite the advancements in rehabilitative technology, current solutions such as rigid exoskeletons often fall short in providing the precision, flexibility, and customization needed for effective treatment. Although traditional robotic aids, such as rigid exoskeletons, help recover, they lack in providing sufficient flexibility, comfort, and easy customization with no need for complicated calculation and complex design considerations. The introduction of soft pneumatic muscles marks a significant development in the rehabilitation technologies field, offering distinct advantages and unique challenges when compared to conventional rigid systems. These flexible actuators closely mimic the elasticity of biological tissues, improving safety and interaction between humans and machines. Designed for individualized therapy, its versatility allows application in various rehabilitation scenarios, from clinical settings to home settings. The novelty of this approach lies in the development of biomechanically-compliant soft pneumatic muscles optimized for precise rotational control of the elbow joint, coupled with an advanced deep learning-based motion tracking system. This design overcomes limitations in force control, stability, and pressure requirements found in existing pneumatic-based systems, improving the safety and efficacy of elbow rehabilitation. In this study, the design, fabrication and systematic evaluation of a soft pneumatic muscle for elbow rehabilitation are presented. The device is designed to closely simulate the complex biomechanical movements of the elbow, with a primary focus on the rotational motions that are essential for controlling flexion and extension, as well as positioning the wrist during grasping tasks. Through the integration of precise geometric parameters, the actuator is capable of controlled flexion and extension, reflecting the natural kinematics of the elbow. Employing a rigorous methodology, the research integrates finite element analysis with empirical testing to refine the actuator's performance. Under varying air pressures, the soft muscle demonstrated remarkable deformation along the X-axis (10-150 mm) and the Y-axis, indicative of its symmetrical rotational behavior, while maintaining minimal elongation along the Z-axis (0.003 mm max), and proper lifiting force under a maximum wight of 470 gm. highlighting the stability and targeted response of the device to pneumatic actuation. A specialized experimental apparatus comprising a 3D environment, a pneumatic circuit, a LabVIEW-based control system, and a deep learning algorithm was developed for accurate position estimation. The algorithm achieved a high predictive accuracy of 99.8% in spatial coordination tracking, indicating the precision of the system in monitoring and controlling the actuator's motion., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Orban, Guo, Luo, Yang, Badr and Elsamanty.)

Auxetic structures, renowned for their unique lateral expansion under longitudinal strain, have attracted significant research interest due to their extraordinary mechanical characteristics, such as enhanced toughness and shear resistance. This study provides a systematic exploration of these structures, constructed from rigid rotating square or rectangular unit cells. Incremental alterations were applied to key geometrical parameters, including the angle (θ) between connected units, the side length ( a ), the side width ( b ) of the rotating rigid unit, and the overlap distance ( t ). This resulted in a broad tunable range of negative Poisson's ratio values from -0.43 to -1.78. Through comprehensive three-dimensional finite-element analyses, the intricate relationships between the geometric variables and the resulting bulk Poisson's ratio of the modeled auxetic structure were elucidated. This analysis affirmed the auxetic behavior of all investigated samples, characterized by lateral expansion under tensile force. The study also revealed potential stress concentration points at interconnections between rotating units, which could impact the material's performance under high load conditions. A detailed investigation of various geometrical parameters yielded fifty unique samples, enabling in-depth observation of the impacts of geometric modifications on the overall behavior of the structures. Notably, an increase in the side width significantly enhanced the Poisson's ratio, while an increase in the overlap distance notably reduced it. The greatest observable change in the Poisson's ratio was a remarkable 202.8%, emphasizing the profound influence of geometric parameter manipulation. A cascaded forward propagation-backpropagation neural network model was deployed to determine the Poisson's ratio for auxetic structures, based on the geometric parameters and material properties of the structure. The model's architecture consisted of five layers with varying numbers of neurons. The model's validity was affirmed by comparing its predictions with FEA simulations, with the maximum error observed in the predicted Poisson's ratio being 8.62%.

Introduction: A soft pneumatic muscle was developed to replicate intricate ankle motions essential for rehabilitation, with a specific focus on rotational movement along the x-axis, crucial for walking. The design incorporated precise geometrical parameters and air pressure regulation to enable controlled expansion and motion. Methods: The muscle's response was evaluated under pressure conditions ranging from 100-145 kPa. To optimize the muscle design, finite element simulation was employed to analyze its performance in terms of motion range, force generation, and energy efficiency. An experimental platform was created to assess the muscle's deformation, utilizing advanced techniques such as high-resolution imaging and deep-learning position estimation models for accurate measurements. The fabrication process involved silicone-based materials and 3D-printed molds, enabling precise control and customization of muscle expansion and contraction. Results: The experimental results demonstrated that, under a pressure of 145 kPa, the y-axis deformation (y-def) reached 165 mm, while the x-axis and z-axis deformations were significantly smaller at 0.056 mm and 0.0376 mm, respectively, highlighting the predominant elongation in the y-axis resulting from pressure actuation. The soft muscle model featured a single chamber constructed from silicone rubber, and the visually illustrated and detailed geometrical parameters played a critical role in its functionality, allowing systematic manipulation to meet specific application requirements. Discussion: The simulation and experimental results provided compelling evidence of the soft muscle design's adaptability, controllability, and effectiveness, thus establishing a solid foundation for further advancements in ankle rehabilitation and soft robotics. Incorporating this soft muscle into rehabilitation protocols holds significant promise for enhancing ankle mobility and overall ambulatory function, offering new opportunities to tailor rehabilitation interventions and improve motor function restoration., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Orban, Guo, Yang, Hu, Hassaan and Elsamanty.)

Soft robotics, a recent advancement in robotics systems, distinguishes itself by utilizing soft and flexible materials like silicon rubber, prioritizing safety during human interaction, and excelling in handling complex or delicate objects. Soft pneumatic actuators, a prevalent type of soft robot, are the focus of this paper. A new geometrical parameter for soft artificial pneumatic muscles is introduced, enabling the prediction of actuation behavior using analytical models based on specific design parameters. The study investigated the impact of the chamber pitch parameter and actuation conditions on the deformation direction and internal stress of three tested soft pneumatic muscle (SPM) models. Simulation involved the modeling of hyperelastic materials using finite element analysis. Additionally, an artificial neural network (ANN) was employed to predict pressure values in three chambers at desired Cartesian positions. The trained ANN model demonstrated exceptional performance. It achieved high accuracy with training, validation, and testing residuals of 99.58%, 99.89%, and 99.79%, respectively. During the validation simulations and neural network results, the maximum errors in the x, y, and z coordinates were found to be 9.3%, 7.83%, and 8.8%, respectively. These results highlight the successful performance and efficacy of the trained ANN model in accurately predicting pressure values for the desired positions in the soft pneumatic muscles.

Stroke is one of the most prevalent health issues that people face today, causing long-term complications such as paresis, hemiparesis, and aphasia. These conditions significantly impact a patient's physical abilities and cause financial and social hardships. In order to address these challenges, this paper presents a groundbreaking solution-a wearable rehabilitation glove. This motorized glove is designed to provide comfortable and effective rehabilitation for patients with paresis. Its unique soft materials and compact size make it easy to use in clinical settings and at home. The glove can train each finger individually and all fingers together, using assistive force generated by advanced linear integrated actuators controlled by sEMG signals. The glove is also durable and long-lasting, with 4-5 h of battery life. The wearable motorized glove is worn on the affected hand to provide assistive force during rehabilitation training. The key to this glove's effectiveness is its ability to perform the classified hand gestures acquired from the non-affected hand by integrating four sEMG sensors and a deep learning algorithm (the 1D-CNN algorithm and the InceptionTime algorithm). The InceptionTime algorithm classified ten hand gestures' sEMG signals with an accuracy of 91.60% and 90.09% in the training and verification sets, respectively. The overall accuracy was 90.89%. It showed potential as a tool for developing effective hand gesture recognition systems. The classified hand gestures can be used as a control command for the motorized wearable glove placed on the affected hand, allowing it to mimic the movements of the non-affected hand. This innovative technology performs rehabilitation exercises based on the theory of mirror therapy and task-oriented therapy. Overall, this wearable rehabilitation glove represents a significant step forward in stroke rehabilitation, offering a practical and effective solution to help patients recover from stroke's physical, financial, and social impact.

In the present study, the hydrogen embrittlement (HE) susceptibility of an additively manufactured (AM) 316L stainless steel (SS) was investigated. The materials were fabricated in the form of a lattice auxetic structure with three different strut thicknesses, 0.6, 1, and 1.4 mm, by the laser powder bed fusion technique at a volumetric energy of 70 J·mm -3 . The effect of H charging on the strength and ductility of the lattice structures was evaluated by conducting tensile testing of the H-charged specimens at a slow strain rate of 4 × 10 -5 s -1 . Hydrogen was introduced to the specimens via electrochemical charging in an NaOH aqueous solution for 24 h at 80 °C before the tensile testing. The microstructure evolution of the H-charged materials was studied using the electron backscattered diffraction (EBSD) technique. The study revealed that the auxetic structures of the AM 316L-SS exhibited a slight reduction in mechanical properties after H charging. The tensile strength was slightly decreased regardless of the thickness. However, the ductility was significantly reduced with increasing thickness. For instance, the strength and uniform elongation of the auxetic structure of the 0.6 mm thick strut were 340 MPa and 17.4% before H charging, and 320 MPa and 16.7% after H charging, respectively. The corresponding values of the counterpart's 1.4 mm thick strut were 550 MPa and 29% before H charging, and 523 MPa and 23.9% after H charging, respectively. The fractography of the fracture surfaces showed the impact of H charging, as cleavage fracture was a striking feature in H-charged materials. Furthermore, the mechanical twins were enhanced during tensile straining of the H-charged high-thickness material.

Patients with severe CNS injuries struggle primarily with their sensorimotor function and communication with the outside world. There is an urgent need for advanced neural rehabilitation and intelligent interaction technology to provide help for patients with nerve injuries. Recent studies have established the brain-computer interface (BCI) in order to provide patients with appropriate interaction methods or more intelligent rehabilitation training. This paper reviews the most recent research on brain-computer-interface-based non-invasive rehabilitation systems. Various endogenous and exogenous methods, advantages, limitations, and challenges are discussed and proposed. In addition, the paper discusses the communication between the various brain-computer interface modes used between severely paralyzed and locked patients and the surrounding environment, particularly the brain-computer interaction system utilizing exogenous (induced) EEG signals (such as P300 and SSVEP). This discussion reveals with an examination of the interface for collecting EEG signals, EEG components, and signal postprocessing. Furthermore, the paper describes the development of natural interaction strategies, with a focus on signal acquisition, data processing, pattern recognition algorithms, and control techniques.

Modeling of soft robotics systems proves to be an extremely difficult task, due to the large deformation of the soft materials used to make such robots. Reliable and accurate models are necessary for the control task of these soft robots. In this paper, a data-driven approach using machine learning is presented to model the kinematics of Soft Pneumatic Actuators (SPAs). An Echo State Network (ESN) architecture is used to predict the SPA's tip position in 3 axes. Initially, data from actual 3D printed SPAs is obtained to build a training dataset for the network. Irregular-intervals pressure inputs are used to drive the SPA in different actuation sequences. The network is then iteratively trained and optimized. The demonstrated method is shown to successfully model the complex non-linear behavior of the SPA, using only the control input without any feedback sensory data as additional input to the network. In addition, the ability of the network to estimate the kinematics of SPAs with different orientation angles θ is achieved. The ESN is compared to a Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) network that is trained on the interpolated experimental data. Both networks are then tested on Finite Element Analysis (FEA) data for other θ angle SPAs not included in the training data. This methodology could offer a general approach to modeling SPAs with varying design parameters.

Nature and biological creatures are some of the main sources of inspiration for humans. Engineers have aspired to emulate these natural systems. As rigid systems become increasingly limited in their capabilities to perform complex tasks and adapt to their environment like living creatures, the need for soft systems has become more prominent due to the similar complex, compliant, and flexible characteristics they share with intelligent natural systems. This review provides an overview of the recent developments in the soft robotics field, with a focus on the underwater application frontier.

Advances of soft robotics enabled better mimicking of biological creatures and closer realization of animals' motion in the robotics field. The biological creature's movement has morphology and flexibility that is problematic deportation to a bio-inspired robot. This paper aims to study the ability to mimic turtle motion using a soft pneumatic actuator (SPA) as a turtle flipper limb. SPA's behavior is simulated using finite element analysis to design turtle flipper at 22 different geometrical configurations, and the simulations are conducted on a large pressure range (0.11-0.4 Mpa). The simulation results are validated using vision feedback with respect to varying the air pillow orientation angle. Consequently, four SPAs with different inclination angles are selected to build a bio-mimetic turtle, which is tested at two different driving configurations. The nonlinear dynamics of soft actuators, which is challenging to model the motion using traditional modeling techniques affect the turtle's motion. Conclusively, according to kinematics behavior, the turtle motion path is modeled using the Echo State Network (ESN) method, one of the reservoir computing techniques. The ESN models the turtle path with respect to the actuators' rotation motion angle with maximum root-mean-square error of [Formula: see text]. The turtle is designed to enhance the robot interaction with living creatures by mimicking their limbs' flexibility and the way of their motion.