The LET Procedure for Prosthetic Myocontrol: Towards Multi-DOF Control Using Single-DOF Activations

PLoS One. 2016 Sep 8;11(9):e0161678. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0161678. eCollection 2016.

Abstract

Simultaneous and proportional myocontrol of dexterous hand prostheses is to a large extent still an open problem. With the advent of commercially and clinically available multi-fingered hand prostheses there are now more independent degrees of freedom (DOFs) in prostheses than can be effectively controlled using surface electromyography (sEMG), the current standard human-machine interface for hand amputees. In particular, it is uncertain, whether several DOFs can be controlled simultaneously and proportionally by exclusively calibrating the intended activation of single DOFs. The problem is currently solved by training on all required combinations. However, as the number of available DOFs grows, this approach becomes overly long and poses a high cognitive burden on the subject. In this paper we present a novel approach to overcome this problem. Multi-DOF activations are artificially modelled from single-DOF ones using a simple linear combination of sEMG signals, which are then added to the training set. This procedure, which we named LET (Linearly Enhanced Training), provides an augmented data set to any machine-learning-based intent detection system. In two experiments involving intact subjects, one offline and one online, we trained a standard machine learning approach using the full data set containing single- and multi-DOF activations as well as using the LET-augmented data set in order to evaluate the performance of the LET procedure. The results indicate that the machine trained on the latter data set obtains worse results in the offline experiment compared to the full data set. However, the online implementation enables the user to perform multi-DOF tasks with almost the same precision as single-DOF tasks without the need of explicitly training multi-DOF activations. Moreover, the parameters involved in the system are statistically uniform across subjects.

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Algorithms
  • Artificial Limbs*
  • Female
  • Fingers
  • Humans
  • Image Processing, Computer-Assisted
  • Machine Learning*
  • Male
  • Task Performance and Analysis
  • Time Factors
  • Young Adult

Grants and funding

The authors were funded by the basic funding of the German Aerospace Center (DLR). The funding provider had no role in the study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.