Research and Design of a Medial-Support Exoskeleton Chair.

Abstract

To address lower limb fatigue in workers engaged in prolonged standing, this study proposes a structural design for a medial-support passive exoskeleton seat. The design incorporates support rods positioned along the medial aspect of the user's lower limbs and features an adaptive telescopic rod system, enhancing sitting stability and reducing collision risks in workplace environments. Human motion capture technology was used to collect kinematic data of the lower limbs, and a mathematical model of center-of-gravity variation was developed to calculate and optimize the exoskeleton's structural parameters. Static analysis was performed using ANSYS software (2025 R1) to evaluate the structural integrity of the design. The effectiveness of the exoskeleton seat was validated through surface electromyography (sEMG) experiments, with results showing that the exoskeleton significantly reduces lower limb muscle load by 49.2% to 72.9%. Additionally, force plate experiments demonstrated that the exoskeleton seat improves stability, with a 39.2% reduction in the average displacement of the center of pressure (CoP), confirming its superior postural alignment and balance. The design was also compared with existing exoskeleton chairs, showing comparable or better performance in terms of muscle load reduction, stability, and overall effectiveness.