A flexible power-assisted exoskeleton robot
Through the flexible binding belt and drive mechanism, combined with pneumatic actuators and sensors, the rigidity and safety issues of existing power-assisted exoskeleton robots are solved, flexible power and natural movement are achieved, and wearable comfort and flexibility are improved.
Patent Information
- Application Number
- CN202111404650.9
- Authority / Receiving Office
- CN · China
- Patent Type
- Patents(China)
- Current Assignee / Owner
- Filing Date
- 2021-11-24
- Publication Date
- 2024-12-31
- Estimated Expiration
- 2041-11-24
AI Technical Summary
The existing power exoskeleton robot has strong rigidity and low impact resistance of materials, which limits the wearer's comfort and flexibility of movement, and has safety risks, making it difficult to achieve natural movement.
A flexible power-assisted exoskeleton robot is designed, using waist straps, hip drive mechanism and knee straps. The flexible actuator is supplied with air through a motor drive wire disk and a pneumatic source to achieve the extension of the hip and knee joints. and bending motion, combined with torque sensors and attitude sensors, detect control signals and human intentions, providing free gait following assistance.
It realizes the wearer's daily walking power-assist function, improves wear comfort and flexibility, meets the freedom of movement of the human lower limbs, simplifies wearable operations, and reduces safety risks.
Smart Images
Figure CN113997271B_ABST
Abstract
Description
Technical Field
[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of exoskeleton robots, and in particular to a flexible power-assisted exoskeleton robot. Background Art
[0002] Power-assisted exoskeleton robots sense the wearer's movement intentions and automatically coordinate movements with the human body, thereby enhancing the wearer's motor function and improving endurance. They combine human intelligence and flexibility with the robot's advantages of high load and strong power, and are playing an increasingly important role in rehabilitation medicine, individual combat, industrial production and other fields. However, the existing power-assisted exoskeleton robots have strong rigidity in their transmission methods and low impact resistance in their materials, which limits the comfort and flexibility of the wearer's movements, making it difficult for the wearer to achieve natural movements and posing safety risks. Summary of the invention
[0003] The purpose of the present invention is to overcome the deficiencies of the prior art and to provide a flexible power-assisted exoskeleton robot so as to achieve the purpose of flexible power assistance and comfortable and safe wearing.
[0004] The present invention is achieved through the following technical solutions:
[0005] A flexible power-assisted exoskeleton robot comprises a waist strap, at least one of the left and right sides of the waist strap is provided with a hip joint drive mechanism, which is connected to the thigh strap below through the hip joint drive mechanism, the hip joint drive mechanism comprises a connecting piece, a wire drum, and a winding wire, the connecting piece is fixed to the waist strap, the wire drum is rotatably mounted on the connecting piece, a winding wire is wound on the wire drum, one end of the winding wire is fixed to the wire drum, the other end of the winding wire extends downward and is fixedly connected to the thigh strap, the wire drum is driven to rotate by a driving source, thereby realizing the retraction and release of the winding wire wound on the wire drum;
[0006] A knee strap is provided below the thigh strap, and the waist strap, thigh strap and knee strap are all flexible abdominal straps. A plurality of flexible actuators are provided on the front side of the outer periphery of the knee strap, and the plurality of flexible actuators are arranged at intervals along the circumference of the knee strap. Each flexible actuator extends vertically and is a hollow structure with an air cavity provided therein. An air pipe is connected to each flexible actuator, and a control box is provided on one side of the waist strap, and a pneumatic source is provided in the control box. The air pipes on the plurality of flexible actuators are connected to the pneumatic source, and air is supplied to each flexible actuator through the pneumatic source, so that each flexible actuator bends, thereby driving the front side of the knee strap to bend.
[0007] Furthermore, in the hip joint driving mechanism, the driving source is a motor installed on the connecting piece, the output end of the motor is connected to the wire drum after passing through the reducer and the torque sensor in sequence, and the wire drum is driven to rotate by the motor; a posture sensor is also provided at the lower part of the connecting piece.
[0008] Furthermore, the air tubes on the multiple flexible actuators on the knee joint binding are housed in a sleeve, and the multiple air tubes are guided to the control box through the sleeve.
[0009] Furthermore, the pneumatic source is an air pump, the output end of the air pump is connected to a gas main pipe, and multiple air pipes are gathered at the end of the gas main pipe.
[0010] Furthermore, the flexible actuator is a strip-shaped capsule made of silicone material, and in a natural state, the cross-sectional shape of the flexible actuator is semicircular.
[0011] Furthermore, the winding is a Bowden cable.
[0012] Furthermore, in the hip joint drive mechanism, a shell is provided on the connecting member, and the motor, the reducer, the torque sensor and the cable drum are covered by the shell.
[0013] Furthermore, the waist binding belt, thigh binding belt and knee joint binding belt are all made of flexible nylon fiber woven belts, and both ends of each binding belt are provided with Velcro that can be bonded to each other.
[0014] Compared with the prior art, the present invention has the following advantages:
[0015] 1. The present invention provides a flexible power-assisted exoskeleton robot, which drives the wire drum to rotate through a driving source, thereby realizing the winding and releasing of the wire, and can assist the hip joint extension movement. The pneumatic source supplies air to each flexible actuator, so that each flexible actuator is bent, and can assist the knee joint bending movement. The requirements of freedom of movement and power assistance for the lower limbs of the human body are realized, and the wearer's daily walking assistance function is met. In addition, the flexible power-assisted exoskeleton robot has a simple structure and a compact layout.
[0016] 2. The present invention provides a flexible power-assisted exoskeleton robot, in which the waist strap, thigh strap and knee strap are all flexible abdominal straps, which, on the one hand, meet the ergonomic requirements and fit the wearer; on the other hand, can be freely adjusted according to the wearer's body shape, making the wearing operation simple and convenient, and increasing the wearing comfort and flexibility.
[0017] 3. The present invention provides a flexible power-assisted exoskeleton robot, which has a torque sensor and a posture sensor installed in the hip joint drive mechanism, which can be used to detect various control signals and human intention recognition, and control the free gait following power assistance of the exoskeleton robot. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0018] Figure 1 It is a structural schematic diagram of the present invention.
[0019] Figure 2It is a schematic structural diagram of the hip joint driving mechanism of the present invention with the outer shell removed.
[0020] Numbers in the figure: 1 waist strap; 2 thigh strap; 3 connector; 4 wire reel; 5 winding; 6 posture sensor; 7 motor; 8 reducer; 9 housing; 10 knee strap; 11 Velcro; 12 flexible actuator; 13 trachea; 14 control box; 15 casing. DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0021] The following is a detailed description of an embodiment of the present invention. This embodiment is implemented on the premise of the technical solution of the present invention, and a detailed implementation method and a specific operation process are given, but the protection scope of the present invention is not limited to the following embodiment.
[0022] See also Figure 1 to Figure 2 This embodiment discloses a flexible power-assisted exoskeleton robot, including a waist binding belt 1, wherein at least one of the left and right sides of the waist binding belt 1 is provided with a hip joint driving mechanism. If the hip joint driving mechanism is provided on one side of the waist binding belt 1, single-leg power assistance can be achieved, and if the hip joint driving mechanism is provided on both sides of the waist binding belt 1, double-leg power assistance can be achieved. The hip joint driving mechanism is connected to the lower thigh binding belt 2 through the hip joint driving mechanism, and the hip joint driving mechanism includes a connecting member 3, a wire drum 4, and a winding 5. The connecting member 3 is fixed on the waist binding belt 1, and a posture sensor 6 is provided at the lower part of the connecting member 3. The wire drum 4 is rotatably mounted on the connecting member 3, and a winding 5 is wound on the wire drum 4, and the winding 5 adopts a Bowden wire. One end of the winding 5 is fixed on the wire drum 4, and the other end of the winding 5 extends downward and is fixedly connected to the thigh binding belt 2. The wire drum 4 is driven to rotate by a driving source, thereby realizing the retraction and release of the winding 5 wound on the wire drum 4. The driving source is a motor 7 installed on the connector 3. The output end of the motor 7 is connected to the wire drum 4 after passing through the reducer 8 and the torque sensor in sequence. The specific connection relationship is: the output end of the motor 7 is connected to the input end of the reducer 8, the output end of the reducer 8 is connected to the input end of the torque sensor, and the output end of the torque sensor is connected to the wire drum 4. The output end of the motor 7 rotates to drive the wire drum 4 to rotate, thereby driving the winding 5 wound on the wire drum 4 to assist the hip joint extension movement. A shell 9 is provided on the connector 3, and the motor 7, the reducer 8, the torque sensor and the wire drum 4 are covered by the shell 9 to prevent the wearer from touching the moving parts inside the shell 9.
[0023] A knee joint binding belt 10 is provided below the thigh binding belt 2. The waist binding belt 1, thigh binding belt 2 and knee joint binding belt 10 are all flexible abdominal belts, for example, they can be composed of flexible nylon fiber woven belts, and each binding belt has Velcro 11 at both ends that can be bonded to each other to facilitate binding or unbinding operations.
[0024] A plurality of flexible actuators 12 are arranged at intervals along the circumference of the knee joint bandage 10 on the front side of the outer periphery. Each flexible actuator 12 extends vertically and is a hollow structure with an air cavity inside. The flexible actuator 12 is a strip-shaped bag made of silicone material. In a natural state, the cross-sectional shape of the flexible actuator 12 is semicircular. An air pipe 13 is connected to each flexible actuator 12. A control box 14 is provided on one side of the waist bandage 1. The control box 14 is provided with a pneumatic source, a power supply, etc., and the motor 7 is powered by the power supply. The pneumatic source is an air pump. The air pipes 13 on the plurality of flexible actuators 12 are connected to the pneumatic source. The pneumatic source is used to supply air to each flexible actuator 12, so that each flexible actuator 12 bends, thereby driving the front side of the knee joint bandage 10 to bend.
[0025] The air tubes 13 on the multiple flexible actuators 12 on the knee joint strap 10 are housed in a sleeve 15, and the multiple air tubes 13 are guided to the control box 14 through the sleeve 15. A hook structure can be provided on the connector 3 of the hip joint drive mechanism to fix the middle section of the sleeve 15 to prevent the sleeve 15 from hanging at will. The output end of the air pump is connected to a gas main pipe, which is provided with a solenoid valve, and the multiple air tubes 13 are gathered at the end of the gas main pipe.
[0026] The entire flexible power-assisted exoskeleton robot is respectively tied to the waist, thigh and knee of the wearer through the waist strap 1, the thigh strap 2 and the knee strap 10, so that the robot can be worn by the human body. Since each strap is a flexible strap, the comfort of wearing is increased. And the motor 7 drives the wire drum 4 to rotate, so as to realize the retraction and release of the winding 5, which can assist the hip joint extension movement. The air pump supplies air to each flexible actuator 12, so that each flexible actuator 12 bends, driving the front side of the knee strap 10 to bend, and the knee joint bending assistance function can be realized, thereby realizing the freedom of movement and assistance of the lower limbs of the human body, and meeting the wearer's daily walking assistance function. To a certain extent, it solves the problems of uncoordinated movement and restriction of the wearer's natural movement in traditional rigid power-assisted exoskeleton robots, and improves the wearing comfort and flexibility of the power-assisted exoskeleton robot.
[0027] The above description is only a preferred embodiment of the present invention and is not intended to limit the present invention. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions and improvements made within the spirit and principles of the present invention should be included in the protection scope of the present invention.
Claims
1. A flexible power-assisted exoskeleton robot, characterized in that: The waist binding belt (1) comprises a hip joint driving mechanism on at least one of the left and right sides of the waist binding belt (1), which is connected to the thigh binding belt (2) below through the hip joint driving mechanism, and the hip joint driving mechanism comprises a connecting piece (3), a wire drum (4), and a winding wire (5), the connecting piece (3) is fixed on the waist binding belt (1), the wire drum (4) is rotatably mounted on the connecting piece (3), a winding wire (5) is wound on the wire drum (4), one end of the winding wire (5) is fixed on the wire drum (4), and the other end of the winding wire (5) extends downward and is fixedly connected to the thigh binding belt (2), and the wire drum (4) is driven to rotate by a driving source, thereby realizing the retraction and release of the winding wire (5) wound on the wire drum (4); A knee joint binding belt (10) is provided below the thigh binding belt (2); the waist binding belt (1), the thigh binding belt (2) and the knee joint binding belt (10) are all flexible binding belts; a plurality of flexible actuators (12) are provided on the front side of the outer periphery of the knee joint binding belt (10); the plurality of flexible actuators (12) are arranged at intervals along the circumference of the knee joint binding belt (10); each flexible actuator (12) extends vertically and is a hollow structure with an air cavity therein; each flexible actuator (12) is connected to an air tube (13); a control box (14) is provided on one side of the waist binding belt (1); a pneumatic source is provided in the control box (14); the air tubes (13) on the plurality of flexible actuators (12) are connected to the pneumatic source; air is supplied to each flexible actuator (12) through the pneumatic source, so that each flexible actuator (12) bends, thereby driving the front side of the knee joint binding belt (10) to bend; The air tubes (13) on the multiple flexible actuators (12) on the knee joint binding belt (10) are received in a sleeve (15), and the multiple air tubes (13) are guided into the control box (14) through the sleeve (15); The pneumatic source is an air pump, the output end of the air pump is connected to a gas main pipe, and a plurality of air pipes (13) are connected to the end of the gas main pipe; The flexible actuator (12) is a strip-shaped capsule made of a silicone material; in a natural state, the cross-sectional shape of the flexible actuator (12) is semicircular.
2. A flexible power-assisted exoskeleton robot as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that: In the hip joint driving mechanism, the driving source is a motor (7) mounted on the connecting member (3); the output end of the motor (7) is connected to the wire drum (4) after passing through a reducer (8) and a torque sensor in sequence, and the wire drum (4) is driven to rotate by the motor (7); and a posture sensor (6) is also provided at the bottom of the connecting member (3).
3. A flexible power-assisted exoskeleton robot as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that: The winding wire (5) is a Bowden wire.
4. A flexible power-assisted exoskeleton robot as claimed in claim 2, characterized in that: In the hip joint drive mechanism, a housing (9) is provided on the connecting member (3), and the motor (7), the reducer (8), the torque sensor and the cable drum (4) are enclosed by the housing (9).
5. The flexible power-assisted exoskeleton robot according to claim 1, characterized in that: The waist binding belt (1), thigh binding belt (2) and knee joint binding belt (10) are all made of flexible nylon fiber woven belts, and both ends of each binding belt are provided with Velcro (11) that can be bonded to each other.