Design and Experimental Verification of a Quasi-Passive Variable Stiffness Ankle Exoskeleton for Human Walking Assistance

IF 4.6 2区 计算机科学 Q2 ROBOTICS
Jinlu Wang;Qingcong Wu;Yiqi Zou;Yanghui Zhu;Hongtao Wang;Hongtao Wu
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Abstract

Exoskeleton robots are an effective method for enhancing human walking ability. This letter introduces a quasi-passive variable stiffness ankle exoskeleton, which absorbs negative work produced during ankle dorsiflexion in the stance phase of the gait cycle and releases energy to assist plantar flexion during push-off. Compared to powered exoskeletons, this design does not require high-power actuators but instead relies on a clutch and elastic component to mimic the interaction between muscles and tendons for assistance. Compared to passive exoskeletons, the designed clutch can adapt to different users. Compared to fixed-stiffness exoskeletons, the novel variable stiffness energy storage mechanism passively adjusts stiffness to mimic the biomechanical properties of the ankle joint. The proposed exoskeleton identifies gait phases based on a control strategy using foot force sensors. This strategy controls the exoskeleton's energy recovery and release by determining the gait cycle phase and changing the clutch state. Finally, a level-ground walking experiment was conducted with six healthy participants. Results showed that wearing the exoskeleton reduced the root mean square (RMS) change rate of soleus EMG activity by 7.25% and decreased the net metabolic rate during walking by 3.6%.
准被动变刚度踝关节外骨骼辅助行走设计与实验验证
外骨骼机器人是提高人类行走能力的有效手段。这封信介绍了一种准被动可变刚度踝关节外骨骼,它吸收在步态周期的站立阶段踝关节背屈时产生的负功,并释放能量以协助脚底弯曲。与动力外骨骼相比,这种设计不需要大功率致动器,而是依靠离合器和弹性元件来模拟肌肉和肌腱之间的相互作用来提供帮助。与被动外骨骼相比,设计的离合器可以适应不同的用户。与固定刚度外骨骼相比,新型变刚度储能机制被动调节刚度以模拟踝关节的生物力学特性。该外骨骼基于足部力传感器控制策略识别步态阶段。该策略通过确定步态周期阶段和改变离合器状态来控制外骨骼的能量恢复和释放。最后,对6名健康参与者进行平地步行实验。结果表明,佩戴外骨骼使行走时比目鱼肌肌电活动的均方根变化率降低了7.25%,净代谢率降低了3.6%。
本文章由计算机程序翻译,如有差异,请以英文原文为准。
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来源期刊
IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters
IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters Computer Science-Computer Science Applications
CiteScore
9.60
自引率
15.40%
发文量
1428
期刊介绍: The scope of this journal is to publish peer-reviewed articles that provide a timely and concise account of innovative research ideas and application results, reporting significant theoretical findings and application case studies in areas of robotics and automation.
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