Beyond Surface Electromyography: Novel Measures of Muscle Activation for High-Degree-of-Freedom Assistive Device Control

Abstract

To enable intuitive end-user control of high-degree-of-freedom exoskeletons and other assistive devices, we propose two novel measures of muscle activation for use as control signals: vibration, as measured via acoustic myography, and deformation, as measured via ultrasound. When used alongside or instead of traditional surface electromyography signals, these measures offer significant insight into musculoskeletal dynamics and the potential for enhanced device control capabilities.