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Soft Robotic Glove Provide Relief and Hope for Post Stroke Rehabilitation

Soft robotics have shown tremendous potential in helping patients with hand pathologies perform rehabilitation exercises because of the affordability and the inherent softness the soft actuators possess

Robotic rehabilitation soft gloves, also known as robotic soft gloves or exogloves, are wearable devices designed to assist, rehabilitate, or augment the hand palm and fingers functions of individuals with impaired hand movement or strength. They are commonly used in the treatment of stroke survivors, patients with neurological disorders, or those with musculoskeletal injuries.

Key features of robotic rehabilitation soft gloves

Soft and lightweight materials: The gloves are made of soft, lightweight, and flexible materials, such as fabric or silicone, to ensure comfortable wear and to avoid adding unnecessary weight or bulk to the user’s hand.
Actuation systems: These gloves use various actuation systems to provide assistance in hand and finger movements. Common actuation systems include cable-driven mechanisms, pneumatic artificial muscles (PAMs), shape memory alloy (SMA) actuators, and soft robotic actuators, such as dielectric elastomers.
Sensors: To monitor the user’s movement and provide adaptive assistance, rehabilitation gloves are embedded with different types of sensors, including force sensors, position sensors (e.g., potentiometers or encoders), and electromyography (EMG) sensors to detect muscle activation.
Control algorithms: Advanced control algorithms process the data collected from the sensors and determine the appropriate level of assistance required based on the user’s needs, capabilities, and progress. These algorithms can include machine learning techniques for adaptive and personalized assistance.
Customizable design: Robotic rehabilitation soft gloves are often designed to be customizable in terms of size, shape, and level of support to suit the specific needs of individual users.
Integration with therapy programs: These devices are often used in conjunction with traditional occupational or physical therapy programs to enhance the recovery process and ensure that the patient is receiving the most effective treatment.

Benefits of robotic rehabilitation soft gloves

Improved motor function: By providing assistance in hand and finger movements, the gloves help users regain strength, dexterity, and motor control.
Faster recovery: The gloves enable patients to engage in more frequent and intensive therapy sessions, leading to accelerated progress and better recovery outcomes.
Increased independence: By assisting with everyday tasks, these gloves can help users regain their independence and improve their overall quality of life.
Personalized therapy: The adaptive nature of these devices ensures that each user receives personalized and targeted support based on their specific needs and progress.

Are Cryptocurrencies Different Asset Classes With Other Characteristics

In this article, cryptocurrencies are examined as investment instruments. we aim to verify whether they can be classified as an asset class and what kind of advantages they may bring to the investor’s portfolio.

Traditional currency, as it is administered by Central Banks, should fulfil three functions to be considered as such: unit of account, store of value and medium of exchange. To conclude, high-cap cryptocurrencies generally demonstrate the ability to meet all the aforementioned requirements, while the remaining ones struggle to meet even one.

They are typically traded in the same financial markets and subject to the same rules and regulations. Bitcoin has its roots in anarchist and libertarian philosophies.

Its programmers aspired to formulate a payment system that safeguarded individual rights, cut out intermediaries and was sustained by its community of users. Bitcoin’s distributed ledger technology (DLT) achieved these goals. It worked so well in fact that Bitcoin’s most enthusiastic users were those who wanted to move funds anonymously – drug addicts, money launderers, and citizens of countries with exchange controls.

Nevertheless, it is sufficient to conclude that at least cash-settled crypto-derivatives constitute financial instruments in light of MiFID II. Indeed, this is consistent with the Financial Conduct Authority’s perspective.

Thus, bitcoin is just a gambling product, not even an asset. You may buy bitcoin for a quick buck, only if luck is in your favour. In bitcoin, there is the risk of a lack of uniform regulations, which raises questions over its longevity, liquidity, and universality. There are also documented cases of bitcoin price manipulation, which is another common form of fraud.

Reference

Are cryptocurrencies an asset class for institutional investors … 2021, Viewed 27 February 2021, https://www.ipe.com/home/are-cryptocurrencies-an-asset-class-for-institutional-investors/10043517.article>.

Asset Class 2021, Viewed 27 February 2021, https://corporatefinanceinstitute.com/resources/knowledge/trading-investing/asset-class/>.

Asset Class Definition 2021, Viewed 27 February 2021, <https://www.investopedia.com/terms/a/assetclasses.asp>.

Asset classes 2021, Viewed 27 February 2021, <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asset_classes>.

Cryptocurrencies as an asset class in portfolio optimisation in … 2021, Viewed 27 February 2021, <https://content.sciendo.com/view/journals/ceej/7/54/article-p33.xml?language=en>.

Cryptocurrencies: applications and investment opportunities … 2021, Viewed 27 February 2021, <https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/JCMS-05-2019-0032/full/html>.

Renu Yadav 2021, Can cryptocurrency act as a hedge in a portfolio like gold?, Viewed 27 February 2021, <https://www.livemint.com/money/personal-finance/can-cryptocurrency-act-as-a-hedge-in-a-portfolio-like-gold-11608810229924.html>.

The regulation of OTC crypto … 2021, Viewed 27 February 2021, <https://www.bclplaw.com/en-US/insights/the-regulation-of-otc-crypto-derivatives-under-mifid-II.html>.

How To Short Bitcoin – live4trading.co.uk 2020

What Is Leverage And How Is It Used In Trade?

A key feature of CFD trading is leverage, a powerful tool that also goes by the English name leverage.

Leverage offers traders to take advantage of relatively small price changes, greater flexibility and extend your exposure. It is therefore hardly surprising that the leverage and its effect have made CFD trading so popular.

Simply put, leverage is the tool with which your initial investment in a CFD gets more significant exposure in the same asset. The result is a leverage effect, which implies that CFDs increase the potential profit.

Let’s take a look at an example to concretize the leverage in CFD trading for an underlying asset where the collateral requirement/margin is 5%.In other words, traders are required to invest a minimum of 5% of the amount they wish to trade with.

We are going to examine what the corresponding trade would look like if an ordinary broker executed it.

Ordinary stock trading with the stock ZX

You want to buy 1000 shares in the company ZX which costs 250 USD. Your total investment is, therefore, USD 250,000, i.e. USD 250 x 1,000 shares.

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CFD trading with the share ZX

If you instead choose to trade CFDs for the same share, it would be equivalent to you buying 1000 CFD contracts for the same company stock in the belief that the value will rise. But the advantage of CFDs is that you can use leverage to get the same exposure but with a smaller investment. In this case, it is a 5% security requirement or margin, which is equivalent to USD 12,500 that you need to invest for you to be able to trade with 1000 CFDs for the stock ZX.

The calculation is as follows:

USD 250 per CFD for share ZX = 1000 x 250 = USD 250,000

5% of USD 250,000 = USD 12,500

This means that if you choose to purchase CFDs for ZX, an investment of USD 12,500 is enough to buy 1000 contracts. Compare this with buying the share from an ordinary stockbroker and then having to invest as much as USD 250,000 to be able to buy the same number of the same share.

We hope our leverage article has given you the information you need. The next natural step is to check in with one of the CFD brokers we can recommend to take part in some of their training materials to read more about how to trade with leverage: