A path planning method of 6-DOF robot for mirror therapy based on A* algorithm

Area of Science:

• Robotics
• Rehabilitation Engineering
• Biomedical Engineering

Background:

• Increasing aging population leads to more post-stroke hemiplegia patients.
• Effective rehabilitation methods are crucial for hemiplegia recovery.
• Mirror therapy is a proven technique widely used in rehabilitation robotics.

Purpose of the Study:

• To present an advanced path planning method for robot-assisted mirror therapy.
• To ensure optimal robot motion performance during rehabilitation exercises.
• To enhance the effectiveness of mirror therapy for hemiplegia patients.

Main Methods:

• Detailed kinematic framework of the rehabilitation system.
• Calculation of reference motion paths using kinematic transformation.
• Application of the A* algorithm for path planning, incorporating manipulability for performance optimization.

Main Results:

• Preliminary experiments validated the proposed path planning method.
• The method generates new paths that maintain high consistency with reference paths.
• Ensured robot motion performance was demonstrated in typical rehabilitation scenarios.

Conclusions:

• The proposed path planning method allows manipulators to achieve rehabilitation tasks with acceptable error.
• This approach shows significant potential for improving robot-assisted mirror therapy.
• Optimized motion performance enhances the efficacy of rehabilitation robots for stroke patients.