Wearable Device for Hand Tremor Mitigation
摘要
Parkinson’s disease is a progressive condition affecting many that impacts the nervous system and body control. One of the prominent symptoms of Parkinson’s is an involuntary tremor that often occurs in the hands. There is no cure for Parkinson’s, but treatments exist that can help alleviate the symptoms. Few of these treatments, however, are both affordable and non-invasive. The goal of this research is to create a wearable device that can effectively reduce tremors at low cost. This research is built upon an ongoing study in which multiple proof-of-concept prototypes have been built that has reduced tremors significantly. In this study, progress has been made in reducing the size and weight of previous prototypes while still maintaining effectiveness and adjustability. When compared to the previous prototype, the weight of the device has been reduced by 55.5% and the diameter has been reduced by 46.8%. More significantly, inherent nonlinearities in the theoretical model of the human hand are introduced, and the advantages and concerns associated with the resulting performance are explored. The inclusion of intentional nonlinearities in the wearable device is shown to offer a wealth of performance considerations in tremor simulations.