i-GRIP, a Grasping Movement Intention Estimator for Intuitive Control of Assistive Devices

TL;DR

i-GRIP is a novel system that accurately interprets users' grasping intentions to enable more intuitive control of assistive devices for individuals with upper limb impairments.

Contribution

The paper introduces i-GRIP, a new movement intention estimator that improves the naturalness and responsiveness of assistive device control during grasping tasks.

Findings

i-GRIP achieved promising estimation accuracy in experiments.

The system responded effectively to natural hand movements.

Participants found the control intuitive and responsive.

Abstract

This study describes and evaluates i-GRIP, a novel movement intention estimator designed to facilitate the control of assistive devices for grasping tasks in individuals with upper limb impairments. Operating within a collaborative grasping control paradigm, the users naturally move their hand towards an object they wish to grasp and i-GRIP identifies the target of the movement and selects an appropriate grip for the assistive device to perform. In an experimental study involving 11 healthy participants, i-GRIP exhibited promising estimation performances and responsiveness. The proposed approach paves the way towards more intuitive control of grasping assistive device for individuals with upper limb impairments.