🤖 Research Focus

Our lab develops wearable and assistive robotic devices to support motor recovery in individuals with neurological disorders, particularly stroke survivors.
We focus on creating soft, lightweight, and user-friendly robotic systems that can assist with upper-limb rehabilitation, especially hand and wrist function, through intention-driven, task-oriented movement training.

Our ultimate goal is to realize self-applicable, home-based robotic rehabilitation that enables daily training without requiring constant therapist supervision.

Background

Stroke is a leading cause of long-term disability, and upper-limb motor impairments, especially in hand function, remain one of the most challenging barriers to independent living. Robotic rehabilitation has emerged as an effective strategy to:

• Deliver intensive, repetitive training

• Reduce therapist burden

• Enable objective monitoring and feedback

However, conventional robotic devices often suffer from:

• Bulky structure and weight

• Poor wearability for spastic patients

• Lack of real-time adaptation to patient effort

To overcome these limitations, our lab designs:

• Pneumatic and cable-driven soft wearable robots

• Donning-friendly structures for patients with clenched fists (e.g., severe spasticity)

• BCI-integrated robotic control, enabling motion assistance based on EEG/EMG-detected intention

• Assist-as-needed algorithms that respond to real-time performance

Key Research Directions

• Development of pneumatic and cable-driven robotic gloves for hand opening and grasping

• Design of self-wearable structures that allow independent donning/doffing even in severe spasticity

• BCI-robot integration for intention-driven control

• Real-time feedback through sensor fusion (EEG, EMG, IMU)

• Clinical evaluation of usability, effectiveness, and patient motivation