Kinesiological Instrument for Normal and Altered Reaching Movement (KINARM) is an interactive robotic device designed to assess the sensorimotor and cognitive function of the brain through behavioural tasks using the upper limb. There are two types of KINARMs - the KINARM Exoskeleton and the KINARM End-Point. The technology is used by both basic and clinical researchers in order to develop a greater understanding of the neurological impacts of a variety of injuries and diseases. KINARMs allow researchers to collect more objective and quantitative data for assessing brain function than traditional methods. The devices are created by BKIN Technologies Ltd., doing business as Kinarm, in

Kingston, Ontario Kingston is a city in Ontario, Canada. It is located on the north-eastern end of Lake Ontario, at the beginning of the St. Lawrence River and at the mouth of the Cataraqui River (south end of the Rideau Canal). The city is midway between Toro ...

History

The first KINARM robot to be created was the KINARM Exoskeleton. It was developed in 1999 by Stephen Scott, a neuroscientist and researcher at

Queen's University Queen's or Queens University may refer to: *Queen's University at Kingston, Ontario, Canada *Queen's University Belfast, Northern Ireland, UK **Queen's University of Belfast (UK Parliament constituency) (1918–1950) **Queen's University of Belfast ...

. The KINARM Exoskeleton was commercialized in 2004 when BKIN Technologies was founded by Dr. Scott and Dr. Ian Brown with the assistance of PARTEQ Innovations.

Product

KINARM robots assess the user's ability to interact with a two-dimensional virtual reality environment using their upper limbs. The KINARM Exoskeleton uses a motorized exoskeleton to measure and manipulate the function of the upper limbs and is produced in both human and non-human primate (NHP) versions. The KINARM End-Point uses hand-held robotic rods and is used primarily for human use. Both robot labs are available with gaze-tracking technology. KINARMExoskeleton2014

As of 2018, there were roughly 100 KINARM labs distributed in 14 countries worldwide.

KINARM standard tests

The KINARM Standard Tests (KST) form a library of automated behavioural tasks designed for use with KINARMs. The KST database has been extensively used in research publications and has created a universal platform for the comparison of data on neurological function among normal and impaired human populations.

Applications

There are over 275 published peer-reviewed journal articles that use KINARM Labs. KINARM Labs are being used for concussion evaluation in high-performance athletes at the

Canadian Winter Sport Institute The Calgary Olympic Development Association (CODA), operating as WinSport, is a non-profit organization based in Calgary, Alberta, Canada whose mandate is to provide training and development to Canada's Olympic athletes, and to maintain the facil ...

as a part of the

Canadian Olympic Committee The Canadian Olympic Committee (COC; french: Comité olympique canadien) is a private, non-profit organization that represents Canada at the International Olympic Committee (IOC). It is also a member of the Pan American Sports Organization ...

's national concussion strategy.

References

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