Smart AcuGlove: A Mobile-Controlled Wearable for Targeted Pain Relief and Wellness
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.32628/IJSRSET2512322Keywords:
Acupressure Therapy, Acupoint Stimulation, Non-Invasive Hand Therapy, Battery-Powered Glove, Traditional Medicine Integration, Cost-Effective Rehabilitation, Personalized TreatmentAbstract
The Smart AcuGlove is an embedded therapeutic device designed to automate acupressure treatment by merging electromechanical actuation with principles of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). It features eight micro servo motors embedded in a flexible textile glove, each aligned with specific palmar meridian acupoints. An ESP32-based control unit orchestrates these actuators using real-time task scheduling to execute predefined stimulation protocols with precise timing and force parameters. The system is powered by a compact 12V lithium polymer battery, with voltage regulation provided by a high-efficiency DC-DC buck converter to ensure the safe operation of the actuators. The glove's ergonomic and compliant design maintains natural hand mobility while delivering consistent therapeutic output. By eliminating the need for sensors, the Smart AcuGlove reduces system complexity enhances reliability, and minimizes operational overhead. This integration of traditional therapeutic practices with modern embedded technology offers a portable, autonomous, and repeatable solution for pain management and neuromuscular rehabilitation.
Downloads
References
Lee, J. H., Choi, T. Y., Lee, M. S., Lee, H., Shin, B. C., & Ernst, E. (2012). Acupressure for symptom management in patients with cancer: a systematic review. Journal of Pain and Symptom Management, 44(4), 706–714.
Zhang, Y., Li, Z., & Wang, L. (2021). Design and massaging force analysis of wearable flexible single-point massager imitating Traditional Chinese Medicine. Materials, 14(8), 2113. https://doi.org/10.3390/ma14082113
Priyanka, P., & Ramesh, M. V. (2020). A low-cost wearable device for real-time vital signs monitoring using ESP32. In 2020 International Conference on Communication and Signal Processing (ICCSP), IEEE.
Zhu, M., Do, T. N., Hawkes, E., & Visell, Y. (2019). Fluidic Fabric Muscle Sheets for Wearable and Soft Robotics. arXiv preprint arXiv:1903.08253. https://arxiv.org/abs/1903.08253
Zhou, Z., et al. (2022). Design and Massaging Force Analysis of Wearable Flexible Single Point Massager Imitating Traditional Chinese Medicine. Micromachines, 13(3), 370. https://doi.org/10.3390/mi13030370
Rajan, A. P., et al. (2017). An Automated Acupressure Glove for Stress and Pain Relief. In Advances in 3D Printing & Additive Manufacturing Technologies (pp. 155–167). Springer.
Ferdous, J., Roy, B., Hossen, M., & Islam, M. M. (2023). Implementation of IoT Based Patient Health Monitoring System Using ESP32 Web Server. International Journal of Advanced Research, 11(Jun), 716–726. https://doi.org/10.21474/IJAR01/17119
Arabboev, A., et al. (2024). Design and Development of a Wearable Device for Multi-Parametric Human Health Monitoring. EAI Endorsed Transactions on Internet of Things, 10(24), eetiot.7025. https://doi.org/10.4108/eetiot.7025
Bhattarai, C., Yadav, S. K., & Koirala, S. (2022). IoT Based ECG Using AD8232 and ESP32. Nepal Journal of Science and Technology, 21(2), 115–121. https://doi.org/10.3126/njst.v21i2.62361
C. D. Mejía et al., “A Systematic Review of Commercial Smart Gloves: Current Status and Applications,” Sensors, vol. 21, no. 5, pp. 1–28, Mar. 2021. [Online]. Available: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8070066/
F. S. Al-Nashash, “NOHAS: A Novel Orthotic Hand Actuated by Servo Motors and Mobile App for Stroke Rehabilitation,” ResearchGate, 2023. [Online]. Available: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/376376992
L. Y. Liu et al., “Design of Wearable Hand Rehabilitation Glove With Bionic Fiber Actuator,” Frontiers in Neurorobotics, vol. 16, pp. 1–9, Aug. 2022. [Online]. Available: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9384960/
R. S. Dahiya and H. G. Yao, “Soft Gloves: A Review on Recent Developments in Actuation, Sensing, and Control,” Actuators, vol. 11, no. 8, pp. 1–18, Aug. 2022. [Online]. Available: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0825/11/8/232
S. A. Md Noh et al., “Review of Wearable Sensor-Based Health Monitoring Glove Devices for Rheumatoid Arthritis,” Sensors, vol. 21, no. 5, pp. 1576–1593, Mar. 2021. [Online]. Available: https://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/21/5/1576
K. P. Lakshmi et al., “Smart Hand Rehabilitation Glove,” IOSR Journal of Engineering, vol. 10, no. 10, pp. 45–50, Oct. 2020. [Online]. Available: https://iosrjen.org/Papers/vol10_issue10/Ser-1/F1010014550.pdf
F. S. Rahman et al., “Development of Smart Glove System for Therapy Treatment,” in IEEE International Conference on Biomedical Engineering, 2016. [Online]. Available: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/308851389
R. Patel and D. Shah, “Rehabilitation Through Servo Motor Based Robotic Glove,” JETIR, vol. 8, no. 9, pp. 272–276, 2021. [Online]. Available: https://www.jetir.org/papers/JETIR2109372.pdf
M. Wakabayashi et al., “Experimental Implementation of Smart Glove Incorporating Piezoelectric Actuator for Hand Tremor Control,” Sensors and Actuators A, vol. 172, no. 2, pp. 503–509, Dec. 2011. [Online]. Available: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/234782170
Y. Wang et al., “An Intelligent Glove Interface with Integrated Perceptual Simulation,” Machine Intelligence Research, vol. 19, 2024. [Online]. Available: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666386424006015
S. R. Bhalerao et al., “Investigation of Therapeutic Effects of Wearable Robotic Gloves on Improving Hand Function in Stroke Patients,” ResearchGate, 2022. [Online]. Available: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/363264162
F. Li, J. Chen, G. Ye, S. Dong, Z. Gao, and Y. Zhou, “Soft Robotic Glove with Sensing and Force Feedback for Rehabilitation in Virtual Reality,” Biomimetics, vol. 8, no. 1, p. 83, Feb. 2023. [Online]. Available: https://www.mdpi.com/2313-7673/8/1/83
X. Zhou, A. Mont, and S. Adamovich, “Evaluation of a 1-DOF Hand Exoskeleton for Neuromuscular Rehabilitation,” arXiv preprint arXiv:1907.07311, Jul. 2019. [Online]. Available: https://arxiv.org/abs/1907.07311
C. Suulker and K. Althoefer, “Assistive Soft Robotic Glove with Ruffles Enhanced Textile Actuators,” arXiv preprint arXiv:2408.07834, Jul. 2024. [Online]. Available: https://arxiv.org/abs/2408.07834
M. Sadeghi, A. Abbasimoshaei, J. P. K. Borges, and T. A. Kern, “Numerical and Experimental Study of a Wearable Exo-Glove for Telerehabilitation Application Using Shape Memory Alloy Actuators,” Actuators, vol. 13, no. 10, p. 409, Oct. 2024. [Online]. Available: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0825/13/10/409
X. Wang, Y. Cheng, H. Zheng, Y. Li, and C. Wang, “Design and Optimization of Actuator for Multi-Joint Soft Rehabilitation Glove,” Industrial Robot, vol. 48, no. 6, pp. 877–890, 2021. [Online]. Available: https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/IR-02-2021-0036/full/html
M. Kusunoki, S. Yoshida, and H. Xie, “MagGlove: A Haptic Glove with Movable Magnetic Force for Manipulation Learning,” arXiv preprint arXiv:2207.13370, Jul. 2022. [Online]. Available: https://arxiv.org/abs/2207.13370
C. E. Seim, S. L. Wolf, and T. E. Starner, “Wearable Vibrotactile Stimulation for Upper Extremity Rehabilitation in Chronic Stroke: Clinical Feasibility Trial Using the VTS Glove,” arXiv preprint arXiv:2007.09262, Jul. 2020. [Online]. Available: https://arxiv.org/abs/2007.09262
S. Paganoni et al., “Assisting Hand Function After Spinal Cord Injury with a Fabric-Based Soft Robotic Glove,” Journal of NeuroEngineering and Rehabilitation, vol. 15, no. 1, p. 59, Jun. 2018. [Online]. Available: https://jneuroengrehab.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12984-018-0391-xBioMed Central
Yurkewich et al., “Myoelectric Untethered Robotic Glove Enhances Hand Function and Performance on Daily Living Tasks After Stroke,” Journal of Rehabilitation and Assistive Technologies Engineering, vol. 7, p. 2055668320964050, Oct. 2020. [Online]. Available: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/2055668320964050SAGE Journals
R. S. Dahiya and H. G. Yao, “Soft Gloves: A Review on Recent Developments in Actuation, Sensing, Control and Applications,” Actuators, vol. 11, no. 8, p. 232, Aug. 2022. [Online]. Available: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0825/11/8/232
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 International Journal of Scientific Research in Science, Engineering and Technology

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.