The number of patients suffering from colorectal cancer (CRC) has been increasing. CRC is known to be curable if detected and treated early. Colonoscopy is currently one of the best screening methods for CRC because it can observe and treat disorders in the large intestine. However, operating the colonoscope is technically demanding for doctors because the insertion of the instrument into the large intestine requires considerable training and skill. To address this issue, we propose a novel self-propelled robot with flexible paddles for the intestinal tract. In this device, the torque is transmitted from a motor outside the patient body to a worm gear at the tip of the colonoscope by a flexible shaft. The worm gear is engaged with two spur gears, and flexible paddles fixed to these spur gears contact the wall of the large intestine to provide the propulsive force. We constructed a force transmission model of the robot to confirm the suitability of the design. The prototype of the self-propelled robot was fabricated by a 3D printer, and its locomotion in a simulated rubber intestine was evaluated. The velocity of the robot was faster than the required speed of 6.5 mm/s. The propulsive force was approximately 1 N; thus, the effectiveness of the robotic principle was confirmed. The mechanical locomotion design, its fabrication, and analysis results are reported in this paper.

Owing to aging populations, the number of elderly people with limb dysfunction affecting their daily lives will continue to increase. These populations have a great need for rehabilitation training to restore limb functions. However, the current numbers of rehabilitation hospitals and doctors are limited. Moreover, people often cannot go to a hospital owing to external conditions (e.g., the impacts of COVID-19). Thus, an urgent need exists for telerehabilitation system for allowing patients to have training at home. The purpose of this study is to develop an easy-to-use system for allowing target users to experience rehabilitation training at home and to remotely receive real-time guidance from doctors. The proposed system only needs a monocular camera to capture 3D motions. First, the 2D key joints of the human body are detected; then, a simple baseline network is used to reconstruct 3D key joints from the 2D key joints. The 2D detection only has an average angle error of 1.7% compared to that of a professional motion capture system. In addition, the 3D reconstruction has a mean per-joint position error of only 67.9 mm compared to the real coordinates. After acquiring the user’s 3D motions, the system synchronizes the 3D motions to a virtual human model in Unity, providing the user with a more intuitive and interactive experience. Generally, many telerehabilitation systems require professional motion capture cameras and wearable equipment, and the training target is a single body part. In contrast, the proposed system is low-cost and easier to use and only requires a monocular camera and computer to achieve real-time and intuitive telerehabilitation (even though the training target is the entire body). Furthermore, the system provides a similarity evaluation of the motions based on the dynamic time warping; this can provide more accurate and direct feedback to users. In addition, a series of evaluation experiments verify the system’s usability, convenience, feasibility, and accuracy, with the ultimate conclusion that the system can be used in practical rehabilitation applications.

With the increase in the aging population, the demand for healthcare devices has increased. Among the aging population, many experience joint pain, muscle weakness, or poor balance. Without external help, such persons may have difficulty walking, fall easily, or experience poor quality of life. To provide this category of the population with the opportunity to exercise and walk safely and take care of themselves in daily activities, a stepper motor-powered walking assistive device is proposed and built. The device enables users with different heights to walk in suitable gaits; assists users to stand up, sit down, and step up or down stairs; automatically detects user’s intention using pressure sensors and potentiometers; and can be used outdoors for long periods. In this study, the effectiveness of the device is verified using muscle-activity measurements.

As the population ages, the number of elderly people suffering from systemic diseases such as stroke increases. To address this problem, various wearable walking assistive robots have been developed to promote physical exercise for stroke prevention. Wearable assistive robots have shown the ability to improve human mobility. However, most of these robots are heavy, bulky, and impractical. In this study, we developed a compact ankle assistive robot for elderly users to promote walking exercise. By informing the user of correct motion and timing, the robot can guide the user to achieve a healthy gait by only assisting their ankle joint. The robot provides faster-than-ankle motion to allow the user to feel supported while walking. Users can adjust the robot’s assistance parameters through a graphical user interface (GUI) according to their needs. Furthermore, we proposed a gait-adaptive method for ankle assistive robots to adapt to the user’s changing gait. Hence, the robot can automatically adjust the parameters to provide more accurate walking assistance. Finally, the results of an evaluation experiment demonstrated the feasibility of human gait adaptation. The proposed methods have the advantages of low cost and easy implementation.

Gastrointestinal cancer, when detected early, is treated by accessing the lesion through the natural orifice using flexible endoscopes. However, the limited degree-of-freedom (DOF) of conventional treatment devices and the narrow surgical view through the endoscope demand advanced techniques. In contrast, multi-DOF forceps systems are an excellent alternative; however, these systems often involve high fabrication costs because they require a large number of micro-parts. To solve this problem, we designed compact multi-DOF endoluminal forceps with a monolithic structure comprising compliant hinges. To allow an efficient stress dispersion at the base end when the hinge bends, we proposed a novel design method to obtain the hinge parameters using the beam of uniform strength theory. This method does not involve a high computational cost. The results show that the improved design with a variable hinge thickness can reduce the maximum bending stress, dispersing the stress in a larger area than that of the previous design considering a constant thickness of the hinge. Moreover, the experiments conducted in a prototype confirm that the radius of the curvature was significantly improved. The proposed method could aid in designing other continuum robots relying on compliant hinges.

The increasing demand for rehabilitation and walking assistive devices driven by aging populations has promoted the development of a novel hip joint structure. This design aims to enhance the functionality of lower limb exoskeletons by eliminating the kinematic mismatch with the human’s biological hip. The design utilizes three 1-DOF (Degree of Freedom) rotational joints to replicate natural hip movement. By integrating IMU data, motor compensation is dynamically made to facilitate a more natural gait. Experimental results indicate improved hip joint angles and enhanced user comfort, presenting a promising solution for better walking assistance for elderly individuals.