A Wheelchair with connected crawler

Sho Yokota,Pierre Blazevic,Hisato Kobayashi 한국과학기술원 인간친화 복지 로봇 시스템 연구센터 2006 International Journal of Assistive Robotics and Me Vol.7 No.2

This paper proposes a mechanism for mobile chair system that has 3 flat stages with crawlers. The wheelchair uses connected motor-driven crawlers instead of conventional wheels. The main features of the system are as follows: 1) the wheelchair can pass over fairly wide gaps, i.e., gaps lying between platform and trains at railway stations, 2) the size can be redueced by folding the stages, 3) the wheelchair can pass over obstacles, it can climb up and down stairs if the stairs are not so steep. This paper explains the structure of the proposed wheelchair system, its control architecture and strategies to pass over gaps and obstacles.

A Wheelchair with connected crawler

Sho Yokota,Pierre Blazevic,Hisato Kobayashi 동국대학교 정보융합기술원 2006 International Journal of Assistive Robotics and Sy Vol.7 No.2

The development of crawler type robot that can move in all over the house

Sho Yokota,Kuniaki Kawabata,Pierre Blazevic,Hisato Kobayashi,Hiroshi Hashimoto,Yasuhiro Ohyama 제어로봇시스템학회 2006 제어로봇시스템학회 국제학술대회 논문집 Vol.2006 No.10

Studyon Human body Motion Interface

Sho Yokota,Hiroshi Hashimoto,Yasuhiro Ohyama,Jin-Hua SHE,Daisuke Chugo,Hisato Kobayashi,Pierre Blazevic 제어로봇시스템학회 2009 제어로봇시스템학회 국제학술대회 논문집 Vol.2009 No.8

The joystick is the operation interface of electric wheelchair. The user needs to operate it in accordance with machine’s operational procedure specifications. Therefore the joystick is convenience operation system for the system side rather than the user side We focus on the body motions which humans have, and tryto realize a new type of interface which replaces conventional joystick. There is a body motion which comes from in stinctive adjustment functions to control changes of body shape caused by voluntary actions. We use this kind of motion as an interface and call it HBMI(Human Body Motion Inerface). In this paper, we set a prototype based on the experiment for deriving a suitable measurement to detect human body motion. The evaluation of HBMI by using SD method is also presented.

A Study on Spin-rate Measurement Using a Uniquely Marked Moving Ball

Sho Furuno,Kazuyuki Kobayashi,Tomoyuki Okubo,Yosuke Kurihara 제어로봇시스템학회 2009 제어로봇시스템학회 국제학술대회 논문집 Vol.2009 No.8

A method is proposed for measuring the spin rate of a ball moving through 3D space. The method uses only one high-speed camera and a uniquely marked ball. Five lines, each one a different color, are painted on the??ball’s equator and on its perpendicular great circle, enabling measurement of both the rotational angular velocity (spin rate) and translational velocity. The proposed measurement algorithm consists of two steps. The first step is to measure the translational velocity, for which we developed a new semi-automatic translational speed measurement algorithm. The second step is to measure the ball spin rate employing a unique marker tracking method using a spin rate estimation algorithm based on a rotation matrix. Simulations and experiments were carried out to show the validity of the method, and reasonable results were obtained.

Transcranial Motor Evoked Potential Monitoring for the Detection of Nerve Root Injury during Adult Spinal Deformity Surgery

Hiroki Ushirozako,Go Yoshida,Sho Kobayashi,Tomohiko Hasegawa,Yu Yamato,Tatsuya Yasuda,Tomohiro Banno,Hideyuki Arima,Shin Oe,Yuki Mihara,Daisuke Togawa,Yukihiro Matsuyama 대한척추외과학회 2018 Asian Spine Journal Vol.12 No.4

Study Design: Retrospective study. Purpose: We aimed to determine the utility of transcranial motor evoked potential (TcMEP) monitoring for the detection of intraoperative nerve root injury. Overview of Literature: Intraoperative neuromonitoring is important for the prediction of neurological injuries or postoperative paralysis. Nerve root injury can develop as a complication of adult spinal deformity (ASD) surgery. Methods: We analyzed 295 patients who underwent ASD surgery using multi-channel TcMEP monitoring between 2010 and 2016 (58 men, 237 women; median age, 68 years; follow-up period ≥1 year). We defined the alarm point as a TcMEP amplitude <30% of that at baseline, and nerve root injury as meeting the focal TcMEP alerts shortly following surgical procedures with the presence of postoperative motor deficits in the selected muscles. Patients were classified into two groups, as those with nerve root injury and those with true-negatives. Results: Seven patients (2.4%) exhibited neurological events related to nerve root injury, comprising six true-positive and one falsenegative cases. TcMEP monitoring from multiple myotomes was effective in detecting nerve root injury. Compared to the 248 truenegative cases, the seven cases of nerve root injury were associated with significantly different preoperative pelvic tilt (PT) values, sacral slope values, and degree of change in PT. The cutoff for the degree of change in PT for predicting nerve root injury, with the best sensitivity and specificity, was 17.5°. Multivariate logistic analyses revealed that a change of >17.5° in PT (odds ratio, 17.5; 95% confidence interval, 1.994–153.560; p =0.010) was independently associated with intraoperative nerve root injury. Conclusions: Multi-channel TcMEP monitoring may be useful for detecting nerve root injuries. A change in PT of >17.5° may be a significant risk factor for neurological events related to intraoperative nerve root injury.

Minimum Clinically Important Differences in Oswestry Disability Index Domains and Their Impact on Adult Spinal Deformity Surgery

Go Yoshida,Tomohiko Hasegawa,Yu Yamato,,Sho Kobayashi,Oe Shin,Tomohiro Banno,Yuuki Mihara,Hideyuki Arima,Hiroki Ushirozako,Tatsuya Yasuda,Daisuke Togawa,Yukihiro Matsuyama 대한척추외과학회 2019 Asian Spine Journal Vol.13 No.1

Study Design: Retrospective study. Purpose: To calculate the minimum clinically important difference (MCID) for total and individual domains of the Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) and assess score distribution and changes over time in surgically treated adult spinal deformity (ASD) patients. Overview of Literature: Despite the common use of ODI for assessing ASD, there are no robust studies defining MCID values for this index. Methods: This study included 240 consecutive ASD patients with a minimum of 2 years of follow-up. We calculated MCID values for total and individual ODI domains using all or part of the Scoliosis Research Society-22R questionnaire as anchors. Using current MCID values, we measured the acquisition rates in patients who acquired MCID at follow-up in both total and individual ODI domains. Differences in pathology, age, and locations of the upper and lower instrumented vertebrae were analyzed. Results: MCID of the total ODI score was 11%, with an area under the curve of 0.737. Each domain ranged from 0 to 2, with 1 being the most common value. In the pain and standing domains, >60% of the patients acquired MCID, although acquisition rates of the personal care, lifting, sleep, and sexual activity domains were relatively low (20%–35%). Patients with MCID had more radiographic improvement in lumbar lordosis, sagittal vertical axis, and T1 pelvic angle than those without MCID (p <0.05). Conclusions: To our knowledge, this is the first study to describe MCID of ODI (11%) after ASD surgery. In the pain and standing domains, most patients acquired MCID although the rates of acquisition of MCID in the personal care, lifting, sleep, and sexual activity domains were low. Spine surgeons should counsel their patients regarding the benefits and setbacks of ASD surgery.

Preoperative and Postoperative Pulmonary Function in Elderly Patients with Thoracolumbar Kyphoscoliosis

Tatsuya Yasuda,Tomohiko Hasegawa,Yu Yamato,Sho Kobayashi,Daisuke Togawa,Yukihiro Matsuyama 대한척추외과학회 2015 Asian Spine Journal Vol.9 No.6

Study Design: Case series. Purpose: The objective of this study was to investigate the change in pulmonary function in adult patients with a spinal deformity who underwent spinal corrective surgery. Overview of Literature: Degenerative lumbar and/or thoraco-lumbar deformities are is often prominent in adult spinal deformity cases, whereas a thoracic deformity involving the chest wall is inconspicuous. A lumbar spine deformity could affect the pulmonary function; however, few reports have investigated pulmonary function in adult patients with a spinal deformity. Methods: This study included 14 adult patients with a spinal deformity who underwent posterior corrective fusion (3 males, 11 females; mean age, 67.4 years). We measured percent vital capacity (%VC) and percent forced expiratory volume in 1 second (%FEV1) before surgery and six months after surgery. We investigated the change in pulmonary function after corrective surgery and the correlation between radiographic parameters and pulmonary function. Results: Mean preoperative %VC and %FEV1 values were 99.9% and 79.3%, respectively. Two cases were diagnosed with restrictive impairment, and two cases were diagnosed with obstructive impairment before surgery. %VC improved in the restrictive impairment cases six months after surgery. However, %FEV1 did not improve significantly after surgery in the obstructive impairment cases. Conclusions: Restrictive impairment was improved in adult patients with a spinal deformity by corrective spinal surgery. However, spinal surgery did not improve obstructive impairment.

Relationship between Spinal Hemangioblastoma Location and Age

Tatsuya Yasuda,Tomohiko Hasegawa,Yu Yamato,Sho Kobayashi,Daisuke Togawa,Tomohiro Banno,Hideyuki Arima,Shin Oe,Yukihiro Matsuyama 대한척추외과학회 2016 Asian Spine Journal Vol.10 No.2

Study Design: Retrospective case series. Purpose: To investigate the relationship between tumor location and clinical characteristics. Overview of Literature: Hemangioblastoma is a rare disease that develops in the central nervous system. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is useful to evaluate hemangioblastomas. Hemangioblastoma’s location is designated as intramedullary, intramedullary+extramedullary, or extramedullary by MRI. Methods: We analyzed 11 patients who underwent surgery for spinal hemangioblastoma. Using T1 contrast axial MRI data, the cases were divided into three groups (intramedullary, intramedullary+extramedullary, and extramedullary). Patient demographics, MRI findings, and preoperative neurological status were analyzed and compared for each group. Results: The average age of patients with intramedullary, intramedullary+extramedullary, and extramedullary hemangioblastoma was 34.0, 64.4, and 67.5 years, respectively. Patients in the intramedullary hemangioblastoma group were younger than the other groups. Extramedullary cases had a smaller syrinx compared to the other groups. Conclusions: Age may play an important role in the hemangioblastoma tumor location and the subsequent diagnosis by an MRI.

Optimal Timing of Preoperative Skin Preparation with Povidone-Iodine for Spine Surgery: A Prospective, Randomized Controlled Study

Tatsuya Yasuda,Tomohiko Hasegawa,Yu Yamato,Sho Kobayashi,Daisuke Togawa,Hideyuki Arima,Yukihiro Matsuyama 대한척추외과학회 2015 Asian Spine Journal Vol.9 No.3

Study Design: A prospective, randomized, controlled study. Purpose: The objective of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of two techniques of skin preparation with povidone-iodine. Overview of Literature: Preoperative skin preparation is important for preventing surgical site infection by reducing the bacteria in the surgical area. Povidone-iodine is a commonly used agent for preoperative skin preparation, and further decrease in surgical site infections can be expected by understanding how to apply it more effectively. Methods: Eighty-nine spine surgery patients were randomly allocated to two groups. In group A, povidone-iodine was applied to the surgical site just before starting the operation; in group B, povidone-iodine was applied several minutes prior to starting the operation and was allowed to dry. We collected samples from the wound edge before suturing, and we compared the rates of positive culture between the two groups. Results: The rate of positive culture was 30.2% (13 out of 43 patients) in group A, and 6.5% (3 out of 46 patients) in group B. This indicates that there was a significant difference in postoperative infection rates between group A and group B. Conclusions: Because bacteria on the skin appeared significantly reduced by allowing povidone-iodine to dry for several minutes prior to surgery, we recommend this approach to reduce the incidence of postoperative infections.