الفهرس 
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Abstract
In this dissertation, the design, model, and application of the soft pneumatic actuator (SPA) are described in order to develop a soft robotic glove for assistive and rehabilitative use. First, the SPA is designed and modeled through finite element modeling software. The model is then simulated to view the movement of the actuator and its bending behavior. The model is then optimized to reach the optimum dimensions and materials for maximum bending angle and acceptable stresses. The optimum model is reached and then design of experiment technique is approached to study the individual and relative effects of design parameters. The actuator is then fabricated, and the glove is developed. The glove is integrated with the control box which has the microcontroller that receives and sends signals, the compressor and valves which supply the air flow through the actuator, and the keypad for user interface. Proportional-Integral (PI) controller is then designed and validated first on the model through a co-simulation control loop. The co-simulation control allows to implement the controller on the model, find the controller’s parameters, and validate the controller before applying it on the real system. PI controller and sliding mode controller (SMC) are programmed on the glove’s microcontroller and different modes are added including rehabilitation, grasping and patient-assisted modes. 4 movements are coded on the microcontroller including full grasp, tripod grasp, pinching grasp and pressing. Experiments are then conducted on a healthy subject and a patient to validate the glove’s performance. The experiments included testing grasping mode, pressing mode and patient-assisted mode. Significant effects have been observed throughout the experiments. The glove allowed the patient’s performance to be close to healthy subject’s performance.
Keywords: soft robotic, hand exoskeleton, rehabilitation, activities of daily living, soft actuators, finite-element modeling, design optimization, design of experiment, co-simulation, sliding mode