Arduino-Based Myoelectric Control: Towards Longitudinal Study of Prosthesis Use

Abstract

Understanding how upper-limb prostheses are used in daily life helps to improve the design and robustness of prosthesis control algorithms and prosthetic components. However, only a very small fraction of published research includes prosthesis use in community settings. The cost, limited battery life, and poor generalisation may be the main reasons limiting the implementation of home-based applications. In this work, we introduce the design of a cost-effective Arduino-based myoelectric control system with wearable electromyogram (EMG) sensors. The design considerations focused on home studies, so the robustness, user-friendly control adjustments, and user supports were the main concerns. Three control algorithms, namely, direct control, abstract control, and linear discriminant analysis (LDA) classification, were implemented in the system. In this paper, we will share our design principles and report the robustness of the system in continuous operation in the laboratory. In addition, we will show a first real-time implementation of the abstract decoder for prosthesis control with an able-bodied participant.

Co-Creation Facilitates Translational Research on Upper Limb Prosthetics

“…An emerging route towards clinical translation for upper limb prosthetics is in-home trials [41], which presents a scenario whereby research transcends the laboratory, entering into home environments. Whilst in-home trials are technologically feasible [22,23,42,43], strategies that enable stakeholder collaboration within this context are not currently doc- All four collaborative processes of co-creation occur within each stage of prosthetic research, namely, research proposal development, experimental design, analysis of results, and dissemination of knowledge. In practice, research can be iterative, compared to the linear stages presented in Figure 2.…”

“…An emerging route towards clinical translation for upper limb prosthetics is in-home trials [41], which presents a scenario whereby research transcends the laboratory, entering into home environments. Whilst in-home trials are technologically feasible [22,23,42,43], strategies that enable stakeholder collaboration within this context are not currently documented within the literature. Co-creation can be used as an approach to enable such collaboration; an example of which is presented in Figure 3, which illustrates one way that user involvement could occur throughout an in-home trial.…”

“…Furthermore, evidence has highlighted that laboratory metrics and findings are not always consistent with clinical and/or outcomes of importance to users [20]. This exposes a limited understanding of how devices and/or systems fit within the daily lives and routines of users, for example, within a home environment where experimental constraints are relaxed [21][22][23]. The current rate of progress in addressing user needs poses an opportunity to explore how different research approaches can lead to advancement [24].…”

Co-creation and User Perspectives for Upper Limb Prosthetics

“…For example, developing experimental protocols that take ethical considerations, such as privacy, into account whilst researching within user home environments (Jones et al). In-home trials for upper limb prosthetics have been documented (Brinton et al, 2020;Chadwell et al, 2020;Garske et al, 2021;Wu et al, 2021), however there are challenges when conducting such studies with users. Acquiring ethical approval for user involvement within such studies, may present new scenarios for review committees to consider (Goodyear-Smith et al, 2015).…”

“…However, there is evidence that laboratory-based metrics and findings are not always consistent with clinical outcomes (Vujaklija et al, 2017). Academic research is transitioning toward a combination of laboratory-based studies, and testing devices and systems within people's home environment, to enable clinical translation (Cuberovic et al, 2019;Simon et al, 2019;Hahne et al, 2020;Schofield et al, 2020;Wu et al, 2021). For clinical and user acceptance to be achieved, academia could benefit from collaborating with a variety of stakeholders, such as users, healthcare providers, policy makers, industry specialists, and medical charities.…”