Functional Rehabilitation Robotics: the ‘mPower 1000’ arm brace

The mPower 1000 is a powered arm brace that fits like a sleeve on a person’s arm. The arm brace has myoelectric sensors that sit on the skin’s surface and detect even a very faint muscle signal. When a person with a weak or partially paralyzed arm tries to move their arm and a muscle signal fires, the motor in the mPower 1000 engages to assist in completing the desired movement. In helping achieve desired movement, the device can be worn as a functional aid, used during exercise to maintain gains or applied  during rehabilitation to facilitate Repetitive Task Practice that re-teaches arm movement to the brain.

The mPower 1000 is based on technology developed at MIT, and is lightweight and portable. It has on-board controls for easy use and built-in Bluetooth capability for communication with external applications and systems. The mPower 1000 is for use in the home and in clinical settings. It is intended to increase arm movement for individuals affected by brain injury such as stroke, spinal cord injury (SCI), multiple sclerosis (MS), cerebral palsy (CP), muscular dystrophy (MD) and traumatic brain injury (TBI).

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