About FesRobex

The Project

FesRobex is a research project focused on developing a Hybrid Functional Electrical Stimulation (FES) and Robotic Exoskeleton system for the rehabilitation of lower limb motor functions. The system combines functional electrical stimulation with a robotic exoskeleton to help treat gait disorders, balance and coordination of movements in patients with stroke, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease, paraplegia, and other neurological and orthopaedic conditions.

Research Objectives

The research aims to propose a higher-level system that synchronizes the FES subsystems and the recovery robot with an automatic control system. The main objectives include:

• Study existing FES systems and recovery robots and compare them
• Develop a hybrid control system that adequately manages the balance between FES and robotic controllers
• Design and implement the mathematical model for calculating the torque at each joint for the appropriate selection of motors
• Create a real-time sensor monitoring system for lower limb biomechanical data acquisition during gait analysis
• Develop the central control system (Master-Slave controller) integrating all subsystems

System Components

1. Electromyography system (EMG) — Monitoring muscle electrical activity
2. Electrical Muscle Stimulation System (FES) — Functional electrical stimulation for muscle activation
3. EMG & FES integrated system — Combined electromyography and stimulation control
4. Robotic Exoskeleton — Mechanical structure with actuated joints for lower limb support
5. Central Control System — Master-Slave controller coordinating all subsystems
6. Communication Network — Data link between all system modules

Key Publication

Kavalieros, D.; Kapothanasis, E.; Kakarountas, A.; Loukopoulos, T. “Methodology for Selecting the Appropriate Electric Motor for Robotic Modular Systems for Lower Extremities.” Healthcare 2022, 10(10), 2054. doi.org/10.3390/healthcare10102054

Affiliation

Department of Computer Science and Biomedical Informatics
University of Thessaly, 35131 Lamia, Greece
Intelligent Systems Laboratory (iSL)

Dimitrios Kavalieros — Ph.D. Candidate & Lead Researcher
Academic Profile · GitHub · LinkedIn