MECHATRONIC INTEGRATION FOR PORTABLE HARNESS AMBULATORY SYSTEM FOR REHABILITATION OF GAIT DISORDERS OF ELDERLY AND STROKE SURVIVORS

Innovation in design, safety and feature enhancement of medical devices and rehabilitation aids is persistent and growing.This paper reports the research investigations of portable harness ambulatory system.The system was integrated with wireless sensors for gait measurement.This paper shows the stages of design conceptualized for early gait rehabilitation of elderly and stroke survivors without fear of falling.For performance quantification of patient gait during such rehabilitation program, wireless sensor modules were introduced and explored for use on elderly patients.The inertial measurement sensors provide information on the range of motion, gait speed, and assess fall.Experimental results prove that sensor modules were successfully able to acquire and record the gait information.These sensor modules can also be integrated in the harness ambulatory system.The paper outlines the results of initial research and discusses possible alternatives.