Basic study on combined motion estimation using multichannel surface EMG signals.

To improve degree of freedom (DOF) of system control using surface electromyogram (SEMG), we made a basic study of the estimation of user's intended motion including combined motion which is performed by more than one basic motion simultaneously. Our developed system requested to obtain three SEMG characteristics of basic motion and one SEMG characteristics of rest state. This study defines the motion of grasp, supination and pronation as basic motion, and two combined motion which is "grasp +supination" and "grasp + pronation" are set. Our system investigates the possibility of combined motion estimation based on SEMG characteristics of basic motions. Estimation method which is utilizing optimal SEMG that are derived from multichannel SEMG signals is performed by canonical discriminant space and tendency of degree of similarity between combined motion and basic motion. In experimental results, we succeeded in estimation of combined motion although it was included an estimation of basic motions which were constructed elements of combined motion.