Upper limb exoskeleton

Abstract

The invention discloses an upper limb exoskeleton which comprises a waist supporting unit, the waist supporting unit comprises a plurality of supporting modules arranged in the vertical direction, every two adjacent supporting modules are movably connected and matched, waist supporting can be provided for a user in an upright state, back muscles of the user are lengthened in a stooping state, and the user can sit on the upper limb exoskeleton. And the two adjacent supporting modules are allowed to adjust the distance and / or angle between each other through movable connection and matching, so that the length and curvature change of the waist supporting unit in the vertical direction is realized, and the waist supporting unit fits the bending and standing of the waist and back of a human body. The supporting module comprises a pair of supporting pieces which are bilaterally symmetrical in the horizontal direction, the supporting pieces are arranged to be slidable so as to adjust the distance between the pair of supporting pieces, inclined parts are fixedly arranged on the sides, facing the waist and back of the human body, of the supporting pieces, and the inclined faces of the inclined parts face the human body. The driving part is used for converting force abutting against the inclined part when the human body bends into driving force enabling the pair of supporting parts to slide relatively to be opened, and the back can be better attached.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of powered exoskeleton robots, and particularly to an upper limb exoskeleton. Background Art

[0002] An exoskeleton is a wearable mechanical device. At present, exoskeletons are mainly used as medical auxiliary devices for motion rehabilitation and as assistive tools in industrial production or daily life to relieve muscle fatigue or reduce the burden of carrying heavy objects.

[0003] Most of the existing wearable upper limb exoskeletons adopt a fixed structure on the back to support the wearer's back, improve the wearing stability, and use an active assistive method to provide a certain amount of assistance to relevant parts to reduce the burden borne by the wearer and relieve muscle fatigue. When the user is in an upright state, the upper limb exoskeleton can provide support for the back, but the conventional exoskeleton cannot fully fit the waist and back, and it will instead cause a burden on the user when bending down. Summary of the Invention

[0004] The purpose of the present invention is to provide an adjustable upper limb exoskeleton that imitates the human spine and fits the waist.

[0005] To achieve the above purpose, the present invention provides an upper limb exoskeleton, including a waist support unit. The waist support unit includes several support modules arranged vertically. Two adjacent support modules are movably connected and cooperated, and the movable connection and cooperation allow two adjacent support modules to adjust the distance and / or angle between each other, so as to realize the change of the length and curvature of the waist support unit in the vertical direction, thereby fitting the bending and straightening of the human waist and back.

[0006] Each support module includes a pair of support members that are symmetric left and right in the horizontal direction. The support members are arranged to be slidable to adjust the distance between the pair of two support members. On the side of the support members facing the human waist and back, an inclined portion is fixedly provided. The inclined surface of the inclined portion faces the human body, and is used to convert the force that presses against the inclined portion when the human body bends into the driving force that makes the pair of two support members slide open relatively.

[0007] The two opposite ends of the waist support unit in the vertical direction are respectively connected to a back wearing unit and a hip wearing unit.

[0008] Preferably, the support module further includes a first connecting member disposed between the pair of two support members. The two opposite sides of the first connecting member are respectively slidably connected to the two support members. The first connecting member extends at least a pair of two insertion rods to its two opposite sides. The support members are provided with slots corresponding to the positions of the insertion rods of the first connecting member, and the insertion rods and the slots are inserted and connected.

[0009] Preferably, it further includes an elastic member, and both ends of the elastic member act on the first connecting member and the support member respectively, and are used to provide an elastic restoring force for the support member when the support member slides away from the first connecting member.

[0010] Preferably, it further includes a second connecting member, and the second connecting member is arranged between other adjacent support modules except for the support modules at the head and tail ends. The second connecting member includes a steering column and a fixing column, and the fixing column and the steering column are rotatably connected. One of the support modules is fixedly connected to the fixing column, and the other support module is slidably connected to the steering column.

[0011] Preferably, the fixing column is provided with an installation cavity with an opening facing the steering column, and the steering column partially extends into the fixing column. The upper end of the installation cavity is a C-shaped structure, and there is only a notch in the direction facing the human body, and the steering column can rotate and fall into the notch.

[0012] Preferably, a limiting block extending upward is arranged at the position of the notch, and is used to limit the steering angle of the steering column.

[0013] Preferably, the support module slidably connected to the steering column is provided with a lower insertion hole, and the steering column is inserted into the lower insertion hole. An installation groove is radially formed on the side wall of the lower insertion hole, and a slider and a spring are arranged in the installation groove. Both ends of the spring act on the slider and the installation groove. A chute is formed on the surface of the steering column, and an inclined guiding surface is arranged on the slider and / or the insertion end of the steering column. During the insertion process of the steering column, the slider falls into the chute and is slidably connected to the chute under the guidance of the inclined guiding surface.

[0014] Preferably, sliding stop surfaces are arranged at both ends of the chute, and are used to abut against the slider so that the steering column cannot slide out of the lower insertion hole.

[0015] Preferably, the waist support unit is connected to the back wearing unit or the hip wearing unit through a third connecting member. The third connecting member includes a fixing part fixedly connected to the waist support unit and a steering part slidably connected to the back wearing unit or the hip wearing unit. The steering part and the fixing part are rotatably connected. A stepped groove is arranged on the back wearing unit or the hip wearing unit, and an elastically expanding and opening elastic piece is arranged on the steering part. The steering part is inserted into the stepped groove so that the elastic piece is first compressed and then expanded to prevent it from being disengaged and limited in the stepped groove, and the stepped groove extends horizontally to allow the steering part to slide in the horizontal direction.

[0016] Preferably, the upper limb exoskeleton further includes an assisting unit, and the assisting unit is used to retract the waist support unit in the extended state. One end of the assisting unit is fixedly connected to the back wearing unit, and the other end far away from the back wearing unit is connected to the hip wearing unit.

[0017] The beneficial effects of the present invention are as follows:

[0018] The present invention is provided with an adjustable lumbar support unit. Through several support modules arranged in the vertical direction, two adjacent support modules are movably connected, and are used to adjust the length of the lumbar support unit in the vertical direction. The lumbar support unit can provide lumbar support for the user in the upright state. In the bending state, the back muscles of the user are stretched, and two adjacent support modules adjust the distance and / or angle between each other to realize the change of the length and curvature of the lumbar support unit in the vertical direction so as to fit the bending and straightening of the human lumbar and dorsal regions, and can fit the back better.

[0019] The support module is provided with a pair of support members that support each other left and right in the horizontal direction. Relative sliding can occur between two symmetrically arranged support members on the left and right, and is used to adjust the distance between the pair of two support members. An inclined portion is fixedly provided on the side of the support member facing the human lumbar and dorsal regions, and the inclined surface of the inclined portion faces the human body, and is used to convert the force against the inclined portion when the human body bends into the driving force for the pair of two support members to slide open relatively. In the use state, when the user bends down, the two support members of the support module will adaptively slide while fitting the user's waist, playing a role in fitting the back. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0020] Figure 1 Schematic diagram of the upper limb exoskeleton in a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

[0021] Figure 2 Partial exploded view of the support module (angle one) in a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

[0022] Figure 3 Partial exploded view of the support module (angle two) in a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

[0023] Figure 4 Cross-sectional view of the support module and the upper back plate in a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

[0024] Figure 5 Schematic diagram of the second connecting member in a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

[0025] Figure 6 Schematic diagram of the third connecting member in a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

[0026] Figure 7 Cross-sectional view of the third connecting member and the upper back plate in a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

[0027] Figure 8 Schematic diagram of the arm module in a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

[0028] Figure 9 Schematic diagram of the hip wearing unit in a preferred embodiment of the present invention. Detailed implementation manners

[0029] The embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below. The examples of the embodiments are shown in the accompanying drawings, where the same or similar reference numerals denote the same or similar elements or elements having the same or similar functions throughout. The embodiments described below with reference to the accompanying drawings are exemplary and are intended to explain the present invention, and should not be construed as a limitation of the present invention. For those not specified in the embodiments regarding specific technologies or conditions, they shall be carried out according to the technologies or conditions described in the literature in this field or according to the product specifications.

[0030] The present invention will be further described in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and specific implementation manners.

[0031] Refer to Figures 1-9 As shown, as a preferred embodiment of the present invention, an upper limb exoskeleton is proposed, which includes a back wearing unit 1, a waist support unit 2, and a hip wearing unit 3. The back wearing unit 1, the waist support unit 2, and the hip wearing unit 3 are sequentially connected in the vertical direction from top to bottom, corresponding to the back, waist, and hips of the human body respectively. The upper limb exoskeleton in this embodiment can achieve activities that fit the back of the human body and support the waist and back of the human body during the process of the human body bending down and standing upright. The upper limb exoskeleton is also provided with an assisting unit 4, which is used to provide a pulling force for the user's back in the bending state of the user to assist the user to get up and return to the upright state.

[0032] The waist support unit 2 includes several support modules 21 connected in the vertical direction. In this embodiment, four support modules 21 are slidably connected in the vertical direction to the waist support unit 2. In other embodiments, the number of support modules can be increased or decreased according to the body proportion of the user. The adjacent two support modules 21 are movably connected and matched, and the movable connection and matching allow the adjacent two support modules 21 to adjust the distance and / or angle between each other, so that the adjacent two support modules 21 can move relatively away or relatively close to each other in the vertical direction, and the adjacent two support modules 21 can deflect relatively towards the spinal curvature direction, so as to realize the bending and straightening of the waist support unit to fit the waist and back of the human body.

[0033] The support module 21 includes a first connecting member 24 and a pair of support members 22 symmetrically arranged on the opposite sides of the first connecting member 24 in the horizontal direction. The first connecting member 24 is slidably connected to the support members 22, and the distance between the support members 22 and the first connecting member 24 can be slidably adjusted between the first connecting member 24 and the support members 22. The first connecting member 24 extends three pairs of insertion rods 26 towards the opposite sides of the support members 22, and the support members 22 are provided with insertion slots 25 corresponding to the positions of the insertion rods 26. The insertion rods 26 are inserted into the insertion slots 25, so that relative sliding can occur between the first connecting member 24 and the support members 22.

[0034] Of course, the number of the insertion rods 26 is not fixed, as long as a relative approach or relative separation stroke between a pair of the support members 22 with respect to the first connecting member 24 can be achieved. In order to enable the support module 21 to fit the human body and be able to adaptively slide with the contraction or relaxation of the lumbar muscles of the human body, in this embodiment, an inclined portion 23 is fixedly provided on one side of the support member 22 facing the back of the human body. The inclined surface 231 of the inclined portion faces the human body and is used to convert the force pushing against the inclined portion 23 when the human body bends forward into a driving force for the relative sliding and opening of a pair of two support members 22. In order to better fit the human body, the inclined surface 231 of the inclined portion 23 in this embodiment is an arc-shaped inclined surface. When the user bends forward, the lumbar and dorsal muscles will also stretch to both sides. At this time, the support module 21 will open to both sides along with the stretched muscles on both sides, so as to perform an adaptive sliding, so that the lumbar support unit 2 can elongate along with the stretching of the back muscles and fit the curvature of the human back in the bent state.

[0035] When the user returns from the bent-forward state to the upright state, the lumbar and dorsal muscles will contract again. In order to enable the lumbar support unit to also fit the user's lumbar and dorsal regions during the process of the user's recovery to the upright state, therefore, an elastic member 29 is provided between the first connecting member 24 and the support member 22. Both ends of the elastic member 29 act on the first connecting member 24 and the support member 22 respectively, and are used to provide an elastic restoring force for the support member 22 when the support member 22 slides in a direction away from the first connecting member 24. When the user wants to return from the bent state to the upright state, the support member 22 will perform a stroke approaching the first connecting member 24 along with the contraction of the muscles, playing a certain supporting role for the lumbar and dorsal muscles and avoiding muscle strains.

[0036] In this embodiment, the elastic member 29 is arranged on both sides of the first connecting member 24 facing the support member 22. One end of the elastic member 29 is fixedly connected to the first connecting member 24, and the other end of the elastic member 29 away from the first connecting member is fixedly connected to the support member 22. In other embodiments, the elastic member 29 can also be arranged at the bottom of the slot 25 and the top end of the insertion rod 26, or hooks are respectively arranged on the first connecting member 24 and the support member 22, and both ends of the elastic member 29 are respectively hung on the hooks, which can also realize the recovery of the support member 22 in the second position, that is, the support member 22 performs a stroke approaching the first connecting member 24. A tension spring is used as the elastic member 29 in this embodiment. In other embodiments, the tension spring can be replaced with an elastic restoring device such as an elastic cord as the elastic member 29.

[0037] Except for the support modules 21 at the head and tail ends, the other support modules 21 of the lumbar support unit 2 are connected by a second connecting member 5, so that relative sliding can occur between adjacent support modules 21 and deflection can occur in the direction of bending towards the human spine. Vertically adjacent two support modules 21 are connected by two second connecting members 5. Of course, the number of the second connecting members 5 between adjacent two support modules 21 is not limited to two and can be set according to requirements, as long as relative sliding can occur between two adjacent support modules and relative deflection can occur in the direction of bending towards the spine.

[0038] The second connecting member 5 in this embodiment includes a steering column 51 and a fixing column 52, and the fixing column 52 and the steering column 51 are rotatably pin-connected. An installation cavity with an opening facing the steering column 51 is provided at one end of the fixing column 52, and one end of the steering column 51 partially extends into the installation cavity. The upper end of the installation cavity is a C-shaped structure, and there is only a notch 53 in the direction facing the human body. The steering column can rotate and fall into the notch 53. The rotation direction of the steering column is only allowed to rotate in the direction of the human spine bending. A limiting block 54 extending upward is provided at the position of the notch 53 for limiting the rotation angle of the steering column 51. In this embodiment, the design of partially inserting the steering column 51 into the fixing column 52 is adopted. In other embodiments, an exposed pin connection can also be used for the rotation of the steering column, but such a design makes the rotation range of the steering column too large and is not conducive to the support of the waist in the upright state. In the assembled state, an upper jack 27 is provided at the top end of the support module 21, and a lower jack 28 is provided at the bottom end of the support module 21. The fixing column 52 is inserted into the upper jack 27 of the support module 21, and the support module 21 connected to the top end with the fixing column 52 is slidably connected to the bottom end of another support module 21 through the steering column 51.

[0039] In order to better realize the steering function, one end of the steering column 51 rotatably connected to the fixing column 52 in this embodiment is hemispherical, which can make the rotation of the steering column smoother, and the shape of the installation cavity is adapted to the steering column to ensure the stability of the rotation of the second connecting member.

[0040] Further, in order to achieve relative sliding between the support modules 21, a sliding groove 55 is provided on the surface of the steering column 51, and a slider 221 is provided in the lower insertion hole 28. An installation groove 222 is provided in the side wall of the lower insertion hole 28 along the radial direction corresponding to the position of the slider 221. The slider 221 is connected to the installation groove 222 through a compression spring. For the convenience of installation, an inclined guiding surface is provided at the insertion end of the slider 221 and / or the steering column 51. During the insertion of the steering column 51, under the guidance of the inclined guiding surface, the slider 221 is compressed into the installation groove 222 until the slider 221 falls into the sliding groove 55 and is slidably connected to the sliding groove 55. Both ends of the sliding groove 55 are provided with sliding termination surfaces 551 for abutting against the slider 221 to prevent the steering column 51 from sliding out of the lower insertion hole 28. In other embodiments, it is also possible to provide a slider and a compression spring on the steering column and a sliding groove in the lower insertion hole, but such a setting will increase the volume of the second connecting member 5. For the convenience of installing the slider 221 and the compression spring, in this embodiment, the support member 22 is divided into two halves on its two sheet-like sides, and the support member 22 is formed by splicing these two halves. During installation, the slider 221 and the compression spring can be first installed into one half, and then the two halves are spliced and fixed. The slider 221 and the compression spring can be fixed by welding or bonding.

[0041] In the vertical direction, the upper end of the waist support unit 2 is connected to the back wearing unit 1 through a third connecting member 6. The back support unit 1 includes a back module, a shoulder module, and an arm module. The support module 21 at the upper end of the waist support unit 2 is connected to the back module. The back module includes an upper back plate 11, and one end of the upper back plate 11 is connected to the support module 21 through a third connecting member 6. The third connecting member 6 is similar in structure to the second connecting member 5 and includes a fixing portion 62 and a steering portion 61. The difference is that two relatively inclined and open elastic pieces 63 are provided on the side wall of the end of the steering portion 61 of the third connecting member 6 away from the fixing portion 62. The fixing portion 62 of the third connecting member 6 is inserted and fixed into the upper insertion hole 27 of the support module 21, and the steering portion 61 is inserted into the stepped groove 111 provided on the upper back plate 11. The steering portion 61 can slide in the horizontal direction in the stepped groove 111 for realizing relative sliding of a pair of support members 22 at the first end connected to the upper back plate 11. A stepped groove 111 is provided at the end of the upper back plate 11 connected to the support module 21. During the insertion of the steering portion 61 of the third connecting member 6 into the stepped groove 111, the elastic pieces 63 are first compressed, and when the steering portion 61 is completely inserted into the stepped groove 111, the elastic pieces 63 open and are engaged with the stepped groove 111. The stepped groove 111 extends in the horizontal direction to form a sliding groove that enables the steering portion 61 to slide, for realizing the opening of the support module 21 slidably connected to the upper back plate 11, and the stepped groove 111 and the elastic pieces 63 realize anti-disengagement and limit of the waist support unit 2. Similarly, the connection structure formed by the stepped groove 111 and the steering portion 61 can also be applied to the connection between the waist support unit 2 and the hip wearing unit 3.

[0042] The back module 1 further includes an adjusting member 12 detachably connected to both sides of the upper back plate. The width of the back unit 1 is adjusted by the depth of the adjusting member 12 inserted into the upper back plate 11 to adapt to users of different body types. The shoulder unit 13 includes a shoulder bracket rotatably connected to the adjusting member to realize the movement of the shoulder joint. A shoulder gasket fitting the shoulder is provided on the shoulder bracket. The shoulder gasket and the shoulder bracket are detachably fixedly connected. One of them is provided with several positioning grooves, and the other is provided with at least one positioning block. The number of positioning grooves is at least one more than the number of positioning blocks. The position of the shoulder gasket is adjusted by matching the positioning block with positioning grooves at different positions to finely adjust the position of the shoulder gasket corresponding to the shoulders of different users. In addition to using the positioning grooves and positioning blocks to adjust the position of the shoulder gasket, other adjustable clamping methods such as damping assembly can also be used. In this embodiment, the shoulder gasket is set to be "U"-shaped to fit the shoulder. In other embodiments, other shapes can also be used as long as they can fit the user's shoulder.

[0043] In this embodiment, the arm module is divided into a large arm module 14 and a small arm module 15. One end of the large arm module 14 is rotatably connected to the end of the shoulder module 13 away from the upper back plate 11, and the other end of the large arm module 14 away from the shoulder module 13 is rotatably connected to the small arm module 15. In other embodiments, only the large arm module 14 may be included, which can be set according to actual situations. Both the large arm module 14 and the small arm module 15 include a gasket 16 and two extension pieces 17 opposite to each other on both sides of the gasket 16. Similarly, the extension piece 17 and the gasket 16 are in damping assembly and can be adjusted according to the arm circumference of the user, making the arm module more fitting to the user's arm. In addition to using damping assembly, other adjustable fixing devices can also be used as long as the arm module can be adjusted adaptively according to the user's arm.

[0044] The waist extension plate 32 and the lower back plate 31 are adjustably fixedly connected and can be adjusted according to the user's body type.

[0045] In order to provide assistance to the user during the process of restoring the upright state, a boosting unit 4 is provided in the upper limb exoskeleton. In this embodiment, the boosting unit includes a tensioning mechanism with one end fixed to the upper back plate 11 and the other end fixed to the lower back plate 31, and a displacement and attitude sensor is provided in the lower back plate 31 to detect the movement trend of the user's back. When it is detected that the user needs to restore the upright state from the bent state, the tensioning mechanism is driven to retract to assist the user in restoring the upright state. The sensor used in this embodiment is a prior art, and as long as it can realize displacement and attitude sensing, it can be applied to this embodiment.

[0046] Although the embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described above, it is to be understood that the above embodiments are exemplary and should not be construed as limiting the present invention. Those of ordinary skill in the art can make changes, modifications, substitutions, and variations to the above embodiments within the scope of the present invention without departing from the principles and spirit of the present invention.

Claims

1. An upper limb exoskeleton, characterized in that: The waist support unit comprises a plurality of support modules arranged in a vertical direction, two adjacent support modules can be movably connected and matched, and the movably connected and matched two adjacent support modules allow the distance and / or angle between the two adjacent support modules to be adjusted, so as to change the length and curvature of the waist support unit in the vertical direction so as to fit the bending and uprighting of the waist and back of the human body. The support module includes a pair of support members that are symmetrical in the horizontal direction, and the support members are configured to be slidable to adjust the distance between the two support members in the pair. A sloped portion is fixedly provided on the side of the support member facing the waist and back of the human body, and the slope of the sloped portion faces the human body, and is used to convert the force against the sloped portion when the human body bends into a driving force to make the two support members in the pair slide open relatively. The two opposite ends of the waist support unit in the vertical direction are respectively connected to the back wearing unit and the hip wearing unit.

2. The upper limb exoskeleton according to claim 1, characterized in that: The support module also includes a first connecting member arranged between a pair of two supporting members, and the first connecting member is slidably connected to the two supporting members on two opposite sides respectively. The first connecting member extends at least a pair of two plug rods to its opposite sides, and the supporting member is provided with a slot corresponding to the position of the plug rod of the first connecting member, and the plug rod is plugged into the slot.

3. The upper limb exoskeleton according to claim 1, characterized in that: It also includes an elastic member, two ends of which act on the first connecting member and the supporting member respectively, and are used to provide elastic restoring force for the supporting member when the supporting member slides in a direction away from the first connecting member.

4. The upper limb exoskeleton according to claim 1, characterized in that: It also includes a second connecting member, which is arranged between other adjacent support modules except the support modules at the head and tail ends. The second connecting member includes a steering column and a fixed column, and the fixed column is rotatably connected to the steering column, one of the support modules is fixedly connected to the fixed column, and the other support module is slidably connected to the steering column.

5. The upper limb exoskeleton according to claim 4, characterized in that: The fixing column is provided with an installation cavity with an opening toward the steering column, the steering column partially extends into the fixing column, the upper end of the installation cavity is a C-shaped structure, and only a notch is provided in the direction facing the human body, and the steering column can rotate and fall into the notch.

6. The upper limb exoskeleton according to claim 5, characterized in that: A limiting block extending upward is provided at the notch position for limiting the steering angle of the steering column.

7. The upper limb exoskeleton according to claim 4, characterized in that: The support module slidably connected to the steering column is provided with a lower plug hole, the steering column is inserted into the lower plug hole, a mounting groove is radially opened on the side wall of the lower plug hole, a slider and a spring are provided in the mounting groove, both ends of the spring act on the sliding and mounting grooves, a slide groove is provided on the surface of the steering column, and an inclined guiding surface is provided at the insertion end of the slider and / or the steering column. During the insertion process of the steering column, the slider is guided by the inclined guiding surface to fall into the slide groove and be slidably connected to the slide groove.

8. The upper limb exoskeleton according to claim 7, characterized in that: Both ends of the slide groove are provided with sliding end surfaces for abutting against the sliding block so that the steering column cannot slide out of the lower plug hole.

9. The upper limb exoskeleton according to claim 1, characterized in that: The waist support unit is connected to the back wear unit or the hip wear unit through a third connecting member, and the third connecting member includes a fixing part fixedly connected to the waist support unit and a steering part slidably connected to the back wear unit or the hip wear unit, the steering part and the fixing part are rotatably connected, a step groove is provided on the back wear unit or the hip wear unit, and an inclined and opened spring sheet is provided on the steering part, the steering part is inserted into the step groove so that the spring sheet is first compressed and then opened to prevent it from falling out and being limited in the step groove, and the step groove extends horizontally to allow the steering part to slide in the horizontal direction.

10. The upper limb exoskeleton according to claim 1, characterized in that: The upper limb exoskeleton also includes a power-assisting unit, which is used to retract the waist support unit in an extended state. One end of the power-assisting unit is fixedly connected to the back wear unit, and the other end away from the back wear unit is connected to the hip wear unit.

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