Soft robotics has shown clear benefits for hand rehabilitation therapies; however, most existing systems focus solely on adults, overlooking children’s distinct biomechanical characteristics. Furthermore, these designs typically target either finger or wrist rehabilitation separately, despite effective therapy requiring coordinated movement of both. To address this gap, this study presents the design, simulation, and validation of a pediatric rehabilitation system enabling finger pulp pinch and wrist flexion-extension movements.
The actuator design process accounts for children’s biomechanical characteristics and uses RTV type 6 (Silika Moldes e Insumos), a material rarely reported in the literature. Mechanical tests following ASTM D412 were performed to simulate the actuators via finite element analysis in ANSYS, using the ANSYS fitting source to extract material coefficients for a fitted Yeoh model.
The manufacturing process for both actuators is then described, followed by testing through a proposed pneumatically controlled system. Comprehensive validation assessed force output, kinematic hysteresis, fatigue, breaking point, and safety factors. Finally, a working prototype of the finger and wrist rehabilitation system is presented.
Autor(es):Barrientos, Junior R.
Fabian, Homero W.
Abarca, Victoria E.
Elias, Dante A.
Año: 2025
Título de la revista: Journal of Mechanical Science and Technology
Volumen: 39
Página inicial - Página final: 6251 - 6266
Url: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12206-025-0952-4