Move-it: A virtual reality game for upper limb stroke rehabilitation patients

Abstract

Stroke rehabilitation plays an important role in recovering the lifestyle of stroke survivors. Although existing research proved the effectiveness and engagement of Non-immersive Virtual Reality (VR) based rehabilitation systems, however, limited research is available on the applicability of fully immersive VR-based rehabilitation systems. In this paper, we present the development and evaluation of “Move-IT” game designed for domestic upper limb stroke patients. The game incorporates the use of Oculus Rift Head Mounted Display (HMD) and the Leap Motion hand tracker. A user study of five upper limb stroke patients was performed to evaluate the application. The results showed that the participants were pleased with the system, enjoyed the game and found it was exciting and easy to play. Moreover, all the participants agreed that the game was very motivating to perform rehabilitation exercises.