Review of electromyography onset detection methods for real-time control of robotic exoskeletons.
Camila R Carvalho, J Marvin Fernández, Antonio J Del-Ama and 2 others
PMID 37872633WHAT IT FOUND
No single EMG onset detection method was best for real-time exoskeleton control.
Adaptive threshold detected onset most precisely, 0.30 seconds after visual inspection. Single threshold was fastest, double threshold slowest.
Key findings
01The review of 156 papers found no gold standard for EMG onset detection, and threshold-based methods were the most common.
02Adaptive threshold was most time-precise, detecting onset 0.30 s after visual inspection, compared with 0.33 s for single threshold and 0.43 s for double threshold, but it produced 9 false positives in 124 cycles, while single and double threshold produced one false positive.
03Processing time per movement cycle was 1.250 ms for single threshold, 1.905 ms for adaptive threshold, and 14.302 ms for double threshold.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTs
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What it does not show
Only three healthy subjects were tested, so results may not apply to clinical populations. The methods were evaluated offline, not while controlling a robot in real time. Visual inspection was the reference, but it is subjective and has no established criteria. Threshold values were set individually after training, so the same settings may not transfer to another person or task. The small sample means the paper does not show whether timing differences are reliable. The review excluded papers on muscle fatigue and papers using additional sensors, so it may not cover all setups used in rehabilitation robotics. No patient outcomes or functional tasks beyond knee and ankle flexion-extension were measured.
Declared interests
Funding was provided by CSIC Interdisciplinary Thematic Platform (PTI+) NEURO-AGING+, the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program, the Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities under grant agreement IJC2020-044467-I, and Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientificas. No author competing-interest declaration is stated in the supplied text.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that these EMG onset detection methods are validated for real-time clinical exoskeleton control. The methods were tested offline in three healthy subjects, and the paper states that no standardized method exists.