Design and preliminary experimentation of a continuum exoskeleton for self-provided bilateral rehabilitation

Existing exoskeletons for rehabilitation usually consist of a rigid kinematic chain of various forms. They are often bulky in size and need structural adjustments from time to time to fit to a specific patient. This paper presents a continuum exoskeleton design for bilateral rehabilitation. Its intrinsic flexibility adapts to different patient anatomies passively to provide AAA (Anatomy Adaptive Assistances) to a group of patients without requiring any hardware adjustments. It has a unique symmetric structure which transmits the motions of the unaffected healthy side to drive the affected hemiparetic side, using the design´s backdrivability. The design compactness also allows the exoskeleton to be brought home for self-provided rehabilitation exercises. The design concept, kinematics, system descriptions and preliminary experimentation are reported. With this new exoskeleton constructed, clinical effectiveness of this equipment could be evaluated and new rehabilitation strategies could be developed.