A Portable Ball with Unity-based Computer Game for Interactive Arm Motor Control Exercise

Abstract

Children with cerebral palsy (CP) may suffer from upper extremity disorders, for which extensive rehabilitation exercises are often used to improve motor control. However, most individuals are unable to sustain regular and repetitive exercise sessions due to the boredom of hospital facilities and the long distance between home and hospital. In order to attract children, our team designed an interactive portable ball associated with Unity-based computer games so that children can exercise at home without the help of physiatrists. To encourage children to actively participate in rehabilitation training, two computer games are designed with visual and auditory feedback, including a three-dimensional (3D) plane flight simulation and a two-dimensional (2D) shape drawing. The upper limb exercise data could be recorded through a machine vision-based evaluation system to allow for analysis of the rehabilitation process and hence evaluation. Preliminary tests have been performed on children with CP. Feedback shows that this device can enhance the exercise of children's fingers, wrists, and shoulder muscles, as well as improve cognitive ability in shape recognition. The design is highly flexible, allowing for customization dependent on the severity of the disease. Also, more rehabilitation games can be developed by adjusting game difficulty levels to meet specific needs.