Stroke is a leading cause of long-term disability, with 80% of survivors having locomotor impairments. Individuals after stroke typically present with hemiparetic gait, characterized as slow, asymmetric, and inefficient. Our lab has been developing soft wearable cyber-physical sytems, called soft exosuits, that interface with paretic limb after stroke through soft and conformal textile-based structures to assist hemiparetic walking. Soft exosuits transmit mechanical power to human body joints via interaction between functional textiles worn on the body and Bowden cable retraction.

Abstract: Robotic devices are excellent candidates for delivering repetitive and intensive practice that can restore functional use of the upper limbs, even years after a stroke. Rehabilitation of the wrist and hand in particular are critical for recovery of function, since hands are the primary interface with the world.