HERO (Hand of Elderly Rehabilitation Opensource) device, is a muscular rehabilitation device, with the aim of increasing the force developed by the hand and fingers. The design we chose, code-named Happy stretch, consist of a stretchable membrane made of Silicon (Dragon Skin®) framed on a rigid, 3D-printed, PLA structure. The membrane contains 8 holes to position fingers in different configuration. Thus, the user can perform different pinching exercises.
To have a continuous rehabilitation process, the device will present a selectable stiffness, thanks to a resizing mechanism built in the frame. Indeed, by imposing a deformation to the silicon, the membrane stiffness will increase. Stiffness is a measure of the load needed to induce a given deformation in the material strength is usually refers to the material’s resistance to failure by fracture or excessive deformation.
Furthermore, a color-coded visual feedback, embedded on the silicon membrane, will help the patient understand if the exercise is properly executed.
HERO can work with the help of an external mobile app that guides the user through the exercises by means of a vocal command (imposing to the user a different rythm and number of repetitions for each exercise).