How it works

Components:

To begin explaining how the Exo-Remedy works, let's dive into the components that were used in the process:

Linear Actuator

Extends itself in one direction, moving the parts of the Exo-Remedy and bending the finger downward.

Force Sensor

Used to read the pressure fed back to the sensor as the routine occurs. When any force is detected, the routine stops, indicating that the patients finger cannot go any further. Then the flex sensor reports the angle in which the finger stopped at and the routine starts on the next finger.

Flex Sensor

Reports back the angle in which the finger has stopped at during the routine.

Cable Adapter

To connect the actuators, we needed a cable adapter to connect them directly to our arduino.

Motor Driver

Used to get the actuator running. This driver can take up to two actuators at once, and both can be programmed using an arduino.

Hardware Assembly:

Now that we have our components, let's look at how they work together on the hardware side. Observe the diagram below. This diagram is applying 3 fingers at once.

Software:

The routine is ran through the code diagram below. We first instantiate our variable, which are the flex sensors, actuators, force sensors, and our pins that are being used. then we apply the "routine" method that takes in the respective actuator, force sensor, flex sensor, and the digital pins for the actuator,. The routine begins pressing down the finger and actively checks for any force, and when it is detected, the routine stops and the flex sensor reports its angle. Then, the same routine is applied to the next finger and so on. Observe the diagram below (this may be not up-to-date, as we are constantly updating our code. If you wish to keep to date with the code, check the "Miscellaneous" tab) :

Check out our "Miscellaneous" tab for videos of the Exo-Remedy in action!

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