JP5268161B2 - Motor learning support apparatus and method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To enable learning motions in more accurate timing. <P>SOLUTION: When a signal processing part 10 outputs a motion image 32V and a feedback signal 22S regarding the motions of an instructor 51 in parallel, the feedback signal 22S regarding the motions is output by the time of adjustment earlier or slower than the timing when the motion image 32V regarding the motion is output. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&amp;INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a biological interface technology, and more particularly to a motor learning support technology that supports motor learning using surface electromyogram signals.

  The so-called muscle tension, which is the force of muscle (skeletal muscle), occurs when the muscle cell membrane stimulated by a nerve pulse is excited and the muscle tries to contract. A surface myoelectric signal is obtained by electrically measuring the excitement with an electrode attached on the skin. In the following description, the surface myoelectric signal is referred to as myoelectric signal unless otherwise specified.

  For example, as disclosed in Patent Document 1, the technique of using myoelectric signals for motor learning is to calculate the impedance of the motion part from the myoelectric signals and display the calculation results to quantitatively determine how to use the muscles. Is shown to the user. That is, since the display device displays the motor learning target value and the degree of impedance of the motion part in the current motion, the difference between the two is visualized. Therefore, the learner can recognize the difference between the reference motion and the current motion by recognizing this difference, and can adjust the impedance so that the motion portion reaches the motor learning target value. Is.

  Moreover, there is an example shown in Non-Patent Document 1 as an example of performing feedback by electrical stimulation. This is a study aimed at sensuously mastering writing by generating electrical stimulation signals based on myoelectric signals of calligraphy experts and giving the generated electrical stimulation to beginners. .

Japanese Patent No. 4005864

Naito, et al., "Teaching effect in calligraphy using sensory information", IEICE, IEICE Technical Report, Vol.103, No.734, pp.139-144, 2004

When the myoelectric signal is used for motor learning, the waveform of the electrical stimulation is created in accordance with, for example, the muscle activity level obtained by calculation according to Patent Document 1. Since the waveform itself reproduces muscle tension in real time and the waveform is given to the instructor as an electrical stimulus, the same movement can be induced.
However, unlike the case where the instructor (learner) moves by himself / herself, when exercising in synchronization with the trigger from the outside, the transmission of the stimulus to be applied and the time difference until the exercise is manifested become a problem. In particular, when the movement of an image is imitated by visual observation, it is necessary to consider a certain time difference between the image signal and the electrical stimulation signal. In addition, depending on the instructor, there may be a case where the operation is performed earlier than the instructor. In such a case, it is necessary to adjust the output timing of the image signal and the electrical stimulation signal.

  The present invention is for solving such problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a motor learning support technology capable of learning motor with more accurate timing.

  In order to achieve such an object, the motor learning support device according to the present invention is attached to an image input unit that captures an operation image indicating the operation of the instructor and a predetermined part of the instructor, and the instructor A detection electrode for detecting a myoelectric signal generated in the part by the operation of the display, a screen display unit for displaying an operation image indicating the action of the instructor on the screen, and a part of the instructor attached to the instructor An output electrode for outputting a feedback signal comprising an electrical stimulus indicating the operation of the instructor to the relevant part of the image, and an operation image obtained by the image input unit to the screen display unit, and a muscle detected by the detection electrode A signal processing unit that generates a feedback signal corresponding to the electric signal and outputs the feedback signal to the output electrode. When the operation image and the feedback signal are output in parallel by the signal processing unit, the operation image related to the operation is output. T Only adjustment time than timing and outputs a feedback signal regarding the operation to the earlier or late.

In addition to this, the myoelectric potential measuring unit that converts the myoelectric signal from the detection electrode into a digital signal in the signal processing unit, and the digital signal obtained by the myoelectric potential measuring unit is subjected to averaging processing after full-wave rectification A processing unit that generates a processing signal, a storage unit that sequentially stores the processing signal and an operation image obtained by the image input unit, and reads out the operation image from the storage unit and outputs the operation image to the screen display unit. In parallel, the processing signal is read out from the early or late time position shifted by the adjustment time from the reading time position of the operation image in the storage unit, and the feedback signal generated from the processing signal is output to the output electrode. it is provided with a generation unit.

  In addition, the motor learning support method according to the present invention includes a step of capturing an operation image showing an operation of the instructor, a step of detecting a myoelectric signal generated at a predetermined site by the operation of the instructor, and an operation of the instructor A step of displaying an operation image showing the screen, a step of outputting a feedback signal comprising an electrical stimulus indicating the operation of the instructor to the instructed part, and an output of the operation image obtained by the image input unit A signal processing step for generating and outputting a feedback signal corresponding to the detected myoelectric signal, and when the motion image and the feedback signal are output in parallel in the signal processing step, A feedback signal related to the operation is output earlier or later by the adjustment time than the output timing.

In addition to this, in the signal processing step, a step of converting the myoelectric signal from the detection electrode into a digital signal, a step of generating a processing signal by performing an averaging process after full-wave rectification of the digital signal, and a processing signal And the operation image are sequentially stored in the storage unit in chronological order, and the operation image is read from the storage unit and displayed on the screen. from the early or late position reading processing signals, in which a feedback signal generated from the processed signal is provided and outputting with respect to site of the leader.

  According to the present invention, when imitating a teaching action, a feedback signal related to the action can be given to the instructor earlier or later than the timing at which the action image related to the action of the instructor is output. Therefore, when the feedback signal is given earlier than the timing at which the instructor starts exercise in the motion image, for example, it is possible to compensate for the delay time from when electrical stimulation is applied to when muscle contraction occurs and exercise starts. It becomes possible to learn exercise at a more accurate timing. In addition, when the feedback signal is given later than the timing when the instructor starts exercising in the operation image, for example, the instructor is instructed to perform the operation for the instructor who tends to operate earlier than the instructor. As a result, it is possible to learn exercise at a more accurate timing.

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the motor learning assistance apparatus concerning this Embodiment. It is explanatory drawing which shows operation | movement of the motor learning assistance apparatus concerning this Embodiment.

Next, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
[Exercise learning support device]
First, the motor learning support device according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the motor learning support apparatus according to the present embodiment.

The motor learning support device 1 generates a feedback signal based on the myoelectric signal detected from the instructor 51, and provides the beginner 52 with the feedback signal as an electrical stimulus to the beginner. It is a device that supports the trainee 52 who learns exercise.
The motor learning support apparatus 1 includes an image input unit 31, a detection electrode 21, a screen display unit 32, an output electrode 22, and a signal processing unit 10 as main components.

The image input unit 31 includes a general video camera and has a function of capturing an operation image 31V indicating the operation of the instructor 51.
The detection electrode 21 includes a plurality of biological electrodes, and is attached to a predetermined part of the leader 51, and has a function of detecting the myoelectric signal 21S generated at the part by the action of the leader 51.
The screen display unit 32 includes a general screen monitor device, and has a function of displaying an operation image 32V indicating the operation of the instructor 51 on the screen.

The output electrode 22 is composed of a plurality of biological electrodes, and is attached to a part of the instructor 52 to which the detection electrode 21 is attached. It has a function of outputting a feedback signal 22S consisting of the electrical stimulation shown.
The signal processing unit 10 includes an information processing device such as a computer as a whole, or a signal processing device that processes and outputs an input signal, and displays an operation image 32V including an operation image 31V obtained by the image input unit 31 on a screen display unit. And a function of generating a feedback signal 22S corresponding to the myoelectric signal 21S detected by the detection electrode 21 and outputting the feedback signal 22S to the output electrode 22.

  In the present embodiment, when the signal processing unit 10 outputs the operation image 32V related to the operation of the instructor 51 and the feedback signal 22S in parallel, the adjustment time is earlier than the timing at which the operation image 32V related to the operation is output. Alternatively, the feedback signal 22S related to the operation is output later.

Next, the configuration of the signal processing unit 10 according to the present embodiment will be described in detail with reference to FIG.
The signal processing unit 10 includes a myoelectric potential measurement unit 11, a signal processing unit 12, a storage unit 13, and a feedback signal generation unit 14 as main functional units.

  The myoelectric potential measuring unit 11 is composed of a dedicated signal processing circuit, and differentially amplifies the myoelectric signal 21S composed of an analog potential indicating the weak skin surface potential detected by the detection electrode 21, and this is amplified by about 1 kHz to 2 kHz. A function of converting a digital signal 11S formed of a digital data string by performing an A / D conversion process at a sampling frequency of.

  The signal processing unit 12 has a function of generating a processed signal 12S by averaging the digital signal 11S output from the myoelectric potential measuring unit 11 with a digital filter having a coefficient set appropriately after full-wave rectification. ing.

  The storage unit 13 has a function of sequentially storing the motion image 31V obtained by the image input unit 31 and the processed signal 12S generated by the signal processing unit 12 in time series. Accordingly, the storage unit 13 stores an operation image 31V related to the motion of the instructor 51 and a processing signal corresponding to a change in the myoelectric signal 21S generated on the surface of the skin in accordance with the motion of the muscle of the instructor 51 regarding this operation. 12S is sequentially stored in time series.

  The feedback signal generation unit 14 reads the operation image 13V composed of the operation image 31V from the storage unit 13 and outputs the operation image 13V to the screen display unit 32, and the processing signal 13S composed of the processing signal 12S. A function of reading from an earlier or later time position shifted by an adjustment time than the read time position of the current signal, and a function of generating a feedback signal 22S from the read processing signal 13S and outputting it to the output electrode 22. Accordingly, the feedback signal 22S related to the operation is output earlier or later than the timing when the operation image 13V related to the operation of the instructor 51 is output.

[Operation of this embodiment]
Next, the operation of the motor learning support device according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing the operation of the motor learning support device according to the present embodiment. Here, in order to eliminate the time delay from applying electrical stimulation to causing muscle contraction and the onset of exercise, the timing of the adjustment 51 is earlier than the operation of the instructor 51 displayed and reproduced on the image display unit 32. A case where the feedback signal 22S is output will be described as an example.

  The myoelectric potential measurement unit 11 acquires the myoelectric signal 21S indicating the operation of the instructor 51 detected by the detection electrode 21, and converts it into a digital signal 11S. The signal processing unit 12 processes the digital signal 11S from the myoelectric potential measurement unit 11 to generate a processing signal 12S.

The storage unit 13 writes the operation image 31V regarding the operation of the instructor 51 obtained by the image input unit 31 to the storage area in order in time series, and in parallel with this, the processing signal 12S from the digital signal 11S is written. Write to the storage area in chronological order.
In the example of FIG. 2, the operation image 31V related to the operation X of the instructor 51 obtained at time T0 is sequentially written from the address A1, and the processing signal 12S related to the operation X of the instructor 51 obtained at time T0 is The data are written in order from A2.

  When the feedback signal generator 14 outputs the motion image 32V and the feedback signal 22S in parallel, the feedback signal generator 14 reads the motion image 13V and the processed signal 13S from the storage unit 13 in parallel. At this time, the feedback signal generation unit 14 reads out the data string of the processed signal 13S stored in the storage unit 13 from the time position earlier by the adjustment time, samples at a frequency of 50 Hz or less, and stimulates this sampling point. A feedback signal 22S fitted with a pulse signal for use is generated.

  In the example of FIG. 2, the operation image 13V related to the operation X of the instructor 51 is sequentially read from the address A1 of the storage unit 13 at time T1. At this time, the processing signal 13S related to the operation X is sequentially read from the address A2 at time T1-Δt that is earlier than the time T1 by the adjustment time Δt. Actually, since the operation image 13V and the processing signal 13S are temporally continuous data strings, the processing signal 13S is always read from an earlier time position shifted by the adjustment time Δt from the reading time position of the operation image 13V. It will be.

  In other words, the motion image 13V related to the motion X of the instructor 51 is sequentially read from the storage unit 13 with an adjustment time Δt behind the processing signal 13S related to the motion X. Therefore, since the motion image 13V and the processed signal 13S are temporally continuous data strings, the motion image 13V is always read from a later time position shifted by the adjustment time Δt from the read time position of the processed signal 13S. Become.

  In the feedback signal generator 14, the processing time when generating the feedback signal 22S from the processed signal 13S is almost negligible. As a result, as shown in FIG. 2, the feedback signal 22S related to the motion X is output earlier than the timing at which the motion image 32V related to the motion X of the instructor 51 is output by the adjustment time Δt.

  In addition, what is necessary is just to use the pulse signal equivalent to the low frequency therapeutic device currently used for the feedback signal 22S which the feedback signal production | generation part 14 produces | generates, for example. The pulse width, pulse height, and repetition frequency in the generated feedback signal 22S may be adjusted in advance according to the stimulus received by the instructed person 52.

  The electrical stimulation by the feedback signal 22S generated according to the pulse width, the pulse height, and the repetition frequency set in this manner is earlier than the operation of the instructor 51 displayed and reproduced on the image display unit 32 by an adjustment time. Thus, the output electrode 22 gives the corresponding muscle of the instructor 52 to cause muscle contraction. This eliminates the time delay from applying electrical stimulation to causing muscle contraction and the onset of exercise, so that the exercise imitating the operation of the instructor 51 displayed and reproduced can be learned at an accurate timing. Can do.

  In order to determine the adjustment time, we conducted an experiment that mimics a simple task and examined the effective amount of time shift. The task imitates the flexion and extension of a single joint in 10 seconds. The task was performed by applying an electrical stimulus along with an image to learn the exercise, and then examining the reproducibility of the exercise. Good results were obtained when the shift amount was in the range of 0.1 to 0.3 seconds. In particular, when examining the reproducibility when the shift amount of the image and electrical stimulation is advanced by -0.2, 0, +0.2, +0.4 (seconds), the case of +0.2 seconds is the most. The reproducibility was good and the results were not as good as +0.2 seconds, either earlier or later. Accordingly, it was found that the optimum shift amount is around +0.2 seconds.

[Effects of the present embodiment]
As described above, in the present embodiment, when the signal processing unit 10 outputs the operation image 32V related to the operation of the instructor 51 and the feedback signal 22S in parallel, the operation image 32V related to the operation is output from the timing. The feedback signal 22S related to the operation is output earlier or later by the adjustment time.
Therefore, by giving a feedback signal earlier than the timing at which the instructor starts exercising in the motion image, for example, it is possible to compensate for the delay time from when electrical stimulation is applied to when muscle contraction occurs and exercise starts. It becomes possible to learn exercise at a more accurate timing. In addition, by giving a feedback signal later than the timing when the instructor starts exercising in the motion image, for example, the instructor is instructed to perform the operation for the instructor who tends to operate earlier than the instructor. As a result, it is possible to learn exercise at a more accurate timing.

  In the present embodiment, in the signal processing unit 10, the myoelectric potential measurement unit 11 converts the myoelectric signal 21S from the detection electrode 21 into the digital signal 11S, and the signal processing unit 12 uses the myoelectric potential measurement unit 21S. The obtained digital signal 11S is full-wave rectified and then averaged to generate a processed signal 12S. The storage unit 13 generates the processed signal 12S and the operation image 31V obtained from the image input unit 31 in time series. In parallel with reading out the operation image 13V from the storage unit 13 by the feedback signal generation unit 14 and displaying the operation image 32V on the screen display unit 32 by the feedback signal generation unit 14, the operation image 13V is read out from the storage unit 13. A processing signal 13S is read from an early or late time position shifted by an adjustment time from the time position, and a feed generated from the processing signal 13S Since the output signal 22S is output to the part of the instructor 52 by the output electrode 22, the screen display of the operation image 32V and the output of the feedback signal 22S can be shifted by the adjustment time with a simple configuration. .

  Further, in the present embodiment, a plurality of electrodes are used as the detection electrode 21 and the output electrode 22, and for each myoelectric signal obtained from each electrode of the detection electrode 21, a feedback signal 22S generated from these myoelectric signals is respectively provided. Since the output is made earlier or later, it becomes possible for the instructor 52 to experience the timing of interlocking of each part and the strength of the force.

[Extended embodiment]
The present invention has been described above with reference to the embodiments, but the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments. Various changes that can be understood by those skilled in the art can be made to the configuration and details of the present invention within the scope of the present invention.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Motor learning support apparatus, 10 ... Signal processing part, 11 ... Myoelectric potential measurement part, 11S ... Digital signal, 12 ... Signal processing part, 12S ... Processing signal, 13 ... Memory | storage part, 13S ... Processing signal, 13V ... Motion image , 14 ... feedback signal generation unit, 21 ... detection electrode, 21S ... myoelectric signal, 22 ... output electrode, 22S ... feedback signal, 31 ... image input unit, 31V ... operation image, 32 ... screen display unit, 32V ... operation image 51 ... Leader, 52 ... Leader.

Claims (2)

An image input unit that captures an action image indicating the action of the instructor;
A detection electrode that is affixed to a predetermined part of the instructor and detects a myoelectric signal generated in the part by the operation of the instructor;
A screen display unit for displaying an operation image indicating the operation of the instructor;
An output electrode that is attached to the part of the instructor and outputs a feedback signal comprising an electrical stimulus indicating the operation of the instructor with respect to the part of the instructor;
Signal processing for outputting the operation image obtained by the image input unit to the screen display unit, generating the feedback signal according to the myoelectric signal detected by the detection electrode, and outputting the feedback signal to the output electrode The department and
Wherein the signal processing unit, when outputting in parallel with the feedback signal and the operation image, and outputs the feedback signal related to the operation just ahead or late than the adjustment time timing of outputting the operation image relating to the operation ,
The signal processing unit
A myoelectric potential measuring unit for converting a myoelectric signal from the detection electrode into a digital signal;
A signal processing unit that generates a processing signal by performing an averaging process after full-wave rectification of the digital signal obtained by the myoelectric potential measuring unit;
A storage unit that sequentially stores the processing signal and the motion image obtained by the image input unit in time series;
In parallel with reading out the operation image from the storage unit and outputting it to the screen display unit, the processing signal from an earlier or later time position shifted by an adjustment time from the read time position of the operation image in the storage unit. A feedback signal generation unit that outputs the feedback signal generated from the machining signal to the output electrode;
Motor learning support apparatus which comprises a. Taking an action image showing the action of the instructor;
Detecting a myoelectric signal generated at a predetermined site by the operation of the instructor;
Displaying an operation image showing the operation of the instructor on the screen;
Outputting a feedback signal comprising an electrical stimulus indicating the operation of the instructor with respect to the part of the instructor;
A signal processing step of outputting the motion image obtained by the image input unit and generating and outputting the feedback signal corresponding to the detected myoelectric signal,
Said signal processing step, when outputting in parallel with the feedback signal and the operation image, and outputs the feedback signal related to the operation earlier or late by adjusting time from the timing of outputting the operation image relating to the operation ,
The signal processing step includes
Converting a myoelectric signal from the detection electrode into a digital signal;
Generating a processed signal by performing an averaging process after full-wave rectification of the digital signal;
Storing the processed signal and the motion image in time series in a storage unit;
In parallel with reading the operation image from the storage unit and displaying it on the screen, the processing signal is read from an earlier or later time position shifted by an adjustment time from the read time position of the operation image in the storage unit, Outputting the feedback signal generated from the processing signal to the part of the instructor;
A motor learning support method characterized by comprising :

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