Virtual Reality Music Instrument Playing Game for Upper Limb Rehabilitation Training

Abstract

The motor function of the upper limb is typically impaired in stroke patients; as a result, rehabilitation exercise is crucial to regaining muscular control. While encouraging patients to continue with long-term exercise using standard rehabilitation training methods may be difficult. To deal with this dilemma, virtual reality (VR) games are introduced to motivate patients to take part in therapy. Meanwhile, music therapy has been proven to be extremely beneficial in the early phases of stroke recovery. These activities inspire us to include musical instrument play like xylophone and drums, in the design of VR games. By striking the xylophone's highlighted keys or the flying notes aimed at the drums, the impaired upper limb functions can be strengthened. Early user evaluations demonstrate that the developed games are straightforward to use and appeal to patients' desire for more exercise.