Biomechanical Analysis of Exo-Assisted Rehabilitation for Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Patients: A Proof of Concept Study

The treatment landscape for neurodegenerative diseases is advancing thanks to integrating exoskeletons in rehabilitation strategies. This paper presents a proof of concept study on the design of an exoskeleton-based rehabilitation approach for Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) patients. The research aims to define an objective assessment of this pathological condition through the collection of biomechanical data, categorize the disease state, and provide assist-as-needed exoskeleton rehabilitation. The preliminary study was conducted on a healthy subject to test the feasibility and validity of the experimental setup and protocol, using an upper-limb passive exoskeleton and Electromyographic (EMG) sensors during some daily living tasks. The results of this study showed a reduction in the selected Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for some muscles using the exoskeleton. In the next steps of the research, the study will be extended to people with ALS, increasing the number of sensors and KPIs to develop the best assistive strategy for an active exoskeleton.