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Updated: Jun 19, 2026
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A Rehabilitation Program of Exoskeleton-assisted Body Weight-Supported Treadmill Training with Non-immersive Virtual Reality for Stroke Patients
Published on: May 16, 2025
Therapist-exoskeleton-patient interaction for gait therapy.
Emek Barış Küçüktabak1,2,3, Matthew R Short1,4, Lorenzo Vianello1
1Shirley Ryan AbilityLab, Chicago, IL, USA.
Science Robotics
|June 17, 2026
Summary
This study introduces therapist-exoskeleton-patient interaction (TEPI), a novel gait rehabilitation approach for stroke survivors. TEPI enhances mobility and patient engagement by enabling therapists to guide movement with robotic assistance.
Area of Science:
- Rehabilitation Medicine
- Robotics
- Neuroscience
Background:
- Stroke frequently causes lower limb mobility impairments, necessitating effective gait rehabilitation.
- Conventional therapist-led training can be physically demanding and limited in scope.
- Existing robotic exoskeletons may restrict therapist adaptability and patient-specific needs.
Purpose of the Study:
- To introduce and evaluate a new gait rehabilitation paradigm: therapist-exoskeleton-patient interaction (TEPI).
- To assess TEPI's impact on gait recovery, therapist involvement, and patient experience post-stroke.
Main Methods:
- Developed a TEPI system where therapist and patient wear connected lower-limb exoskeletons.
- Enabled bidirectional physical interaction and haptic feedback for therapist guidance.
- Conducted a within-subject study comparing TEPI with conventional therapy in chronic stroke patients during treadmill walking.
Main Results:
- TEPI demonstrated significant improvements in joint range of motion, step length, and step height compared to conventional therapy.
- Muscle activation levels were similar between TEPI and conventional therapy.
- Patients reported high motivation and enjoyment with the TEPI approach.
Conclusions:
- TEPI effectively integrates robotic capabilities with therapist expertise for enhanced gait rehabilitation.
- This human-robot-human interaction paradigm shows promise for improving stroke recovery outcomes.
- TEPI offers a flexible and engaging framework for post-stroke gait training.
