Rehabilitation using Kinect-based Games and Virtual Reality

This paper introduces the development of a customized virtual reality system based on a serious game which allows the user to carry out physical and cognitive rehabilitation therapies using a natural user interface based on Microsoft(C) Kinect. Within these serious games you can find the exergames. It is a type of serious game which aims to stimulate body mobility through an immersive experience that situates the user inside virtual interactive landscapes. This type of game has become popular in recent years thanks to the creation of consoles like Nintendo Wii, Playstation or Xbox, which use gestural interaction game interfaces. Likewise, these technologies have become extremely useful tools in rehabilitation, and they are expected to permit a reduction of costs in socio- sanitary environments. The proposed virtual reality platform consists of different types of exercises by which the user is able to train or rehabilitate several aspects such as strength, aerobic or cognitive capacities. The system has been modelled so that the physical presence of a therapist is not required during the course of the session and there is no need to wear any kind of marker or sensor. Moreover, all parameters of the different exercises can be configured without the physical presence of a therapist. The reports of each session can also be read offline, therefore, the therapist will always know if a user has performed the session in a good way and act accordingly modifying whatever he deems necessary in the patient's therapy. Due to these facts the system developed and presented in this article is a rehabilitation system based on remote assistance. It is important that this type of serious games accomplish all the functionalities a videogame fulfils at the same time that accomplish specific functionalities in its therapeutic environment. Remarkably, it is required an adaptation to the patient's abilities to avoid frustration and provide immediate feedback to the user during the exercises. In our system, the users are monitored and receive an audio-visual feedback during the session, so that they know in real- time if they are correctly doing the exercises of the specific therapy that was designed for them. (C) 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V.