One in six people is affected by strokes, according to the Spanish Federation Against Stroke, and the condition affects patients and relatives alike, particularly during the rehabilitation phase where work is done to minimize the disabilities caused by the stroke and facilitate patients’ social reintegration. The objective of the HOMEREHAB project is to make this process easier.
Ceit-IK4, in collaboration with specialists from the Biomedical Neuroengineering group at the University of Elche, has developed a robot that allows patients who have suffered a stroke to undertake motor recovery in their upper limbs (arm and shoulder) without leaving their home and under daily monitoring by qualified personnel.

The routine therapeutic exercises prescribed for this type of rehabilitation become fun, virtual games that are tailored to the patient in terms difficulty and type of movements and that the patient must complete using the robotic device. The system is designed to accompany the patient in all phases of recovery. In the first phase of recovery, the robot helps her perform the movements that cannot be made due to the stroke by applying the force that a therapist would, eliminating the need to send therapists to home settings. In a second phase of recovery, once the patient has managed to recover part of her lost motor ability, the robot is able to oppose the movements of the patient in order to strengthen her musculature.

The tele-rehabilitation interface designed to allow the medical specialist to assign personalized game routines via the cloud and receive a detailed analysis of the patient's performance on each of routine that is based on the robot’s measurement of parameters such as the patient’s speed, movements made, and even her physiological state.

Traditional methods need to incorporate new technologies in order to improve the quality of life of those who suffer from consequences of this type of condition. Thanks to this advance, patients and their relatives no longer have to visit a specialized rehabilitation center on a daily basis, and the ability to monitor the patient's progress results in a more efficient recovery.