Development of closed-fitting-type walking assistance device for legs and evaluation of muscle activity

Author

Ikehara, Tadaaki ; Nagamura, Kazuteru ; Ushida, Takurou ; Tanaka, Eiichirou ; Saegusa, Shozo ; Kojima, Sho ; Yuge, Louis

Author_Institution

Dept. of Monozukuri, Tokyo Metropolitan Coll. of Ind. Technol., Tokyo, Japan

fYear

2011

fDate

June 29 2011-July 1 2011

Firstpage

1

Lastpage

7

Abstract

A walking assistance device using a flexible shaft was developed. The combination of a flexible shaft with a worm gear was successfully adopted on this device to simplify its appearance and reduce its size. A hybrid - control system on this device controls both torque and angle at the ankle and knee joints. In this system, the torsional spring constant of the flexible shaft is taken into account by the motor in controlling the power and angle of rotation of the motor. To expand the area in which a person may use the device, it is equipped with a self-contained system powered by a Lithium-ion battery and controlled by an SH-4 microcomputer and actuators, consisting of motors and gears, all of which are carried in a small backpack. Consequently, persons using the device may walk freely in both indoor and outdoor environments.

Keywords

actuators; gait analysis; geriatrics; handicapped aids; medical control systems; microcomputers; muscle; prosthetic power supplies; shafts; torque control; SH-4 microcomputer controller; actuators; angle control; ankle joints; elderly people; flexible shaft; hybrid-control system; knee joints; leg based closed-fitting-type walking assistance device; lithium-ion battery powered self-contained system; muscle activity evaluation; torque control; torsional spring constant; worm gear; Actuators; Joints; Knee; Leg; Legged locomotion; Shafts; Flexible-Shaft; Hybrid Control System; Self-contained System; Walking Assistance Device; Worm Gear; Biomechanics; Humans; Leg; Muscle, Skeletal; Self-Help Devices; Walking;

fLanguage

English

Publisher

ieee

Conference_Titel

Rehabilitation Robotics (ICORR), 2011 IEEE International Conference on

Conference_Location

Zurich

ISSN

1945-7898

Print_ISBN

978-1-4244-9863-5

Electronic_ISBN

1945-7898

Type

conf

DOI

10.1109/ICORR.2011.5975449

Filename

5975449