Wearable exoskeleton

Abstract

Systems and methods are provided for a powered robotic exoskeleton or exosuit for a user's limbs and torso. The exosuit may be equipped with airbag devices mounted at various locations on the suit. The exosuit may include on-board computing equipment that can sense, calculate control commands in real time, and activate the limbs and airbags to restore stability (fall prevention) and, in the event of a fall, minimize injury resulting from the fall (fall protection).

Description

Technical Field

[0001] Cross - reference to Related Applications This application claims priority to U.S. Patent Application No. 16 / 847,380, titled "Wearable Exoskeleton", filed on April 13, 2020, the entire disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

[0002] This disclosure relates to systems and methods for preventing injuries during a fall, and more particularly to a wearable exoskeleton that can prevent a wearer from falling or reduce potential injuries.

Background Art

[0003] Injuries due to falls often occur at the extremities of a falling person, such as the hands and wrists, due to the body's instinctive movements to brace for the fall. When falling backward or forward, a person may unconsciously extend their arms in an attempt to reduce the impact of hitting the ground and prevent injury to the face, head, or other body parts. Unfortunately, these extremities are prone to significant injuries, perhaps even greater injuries than when the person falls on their chest, back, or buttocks. The chest, back, and buttocks can absorb more of the impact of a fall than the hands or wrists and may have a lower likelihood of injury.

[0004] Powered exoskeletons are wearable robots that essentially assist the mobility of the elderly, allowing them to lift objects, climb stairs, prevent injuries, and move around in other ways while minimizing impact and strain on joints. They can also be useful as strength - augmentation devices for warehouse, factory, and construction workers, and some can give a person the ability to easily lift 200 pounds. There is a significant demand for safety, regardless of whether the exoskeleton is worn by an elderly person or a construction worker.

[0005] An exoskeleton can provide an unparalleled opportunity to keep people safe. "Safety" includes preventing falls, maintaining the wearer's stability, limiting the load on joints, and so on. Many studies have been conducted in this direction, and many of them have focused on enhancing performance.

Summary of the Invention

[0006] Aspects of the present disclosure provide systems and methods for a powered exoskeleton or exosuit for a user's limbs and torso. The exosuit may similarly be provided with airbag devices assembled at various locations of the suit. The exosuit may include an on-board computing device capable of detecting, calculating control commands in real time, actuating the limbs and airbags to restore stability (fall prevention), and minimizing injuries caused by a fall (fall protection) in the event a fall occurs.

[0007] According to one aspect, a wearable device is provided, which may include a frame and at least one robotic joint operably coupled to the frame. At least one sensor can be coupled to the frame. The sensor may be configured to detect the movement of the frame. A controller may be coupled to at least one robotic joint and at least one sensor. The controller may be configured to detect an event from the movement of the frame and actuate at least one robotic joint in response to the event.

[0008] According to another aspect of the present disclosure, a method of countering a user's fall is provided. A user profile including one or more user preferences can be loaded. A motion event can be detected by a sensor coupled to the frame. The motion event can be classified according to the data obtained from the sensor. A robotic joint coupled to the frame can be actuated in response to the event based on the classification and the user profile.

[0009] To better understand the following detailed description, the features and technical advantages of the present disclosure are outlined rather generally. Additional features and advantages of the present disclosure are described below. Those skilled in the art will recognize that the present disclosure can be readily utilized as a basis for modifying or designing other structures for carrying out the same purposes as the present disclosure. Similarly, those skilled in the art should clearly understand that such equivalent structures do not depart from the teachings of the present disclosure as set forth in the appended claims. The novel features believed to be characteristic of the present disclosure, both as to its organization and method of operation, together with further objectives and advantages, will be better understood from the following detailed description considered in connection with the accompanying drawings. However, it should be expressly understood that each of the drawings is provided for the purpose of illustration and description only and is not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure.

[0010] The features, nature, and advantages of the present disclosure will become more apparent from the detailed description set forth below when taken in conjunction with the drawings, in which like reference numerals throughout the drawings identify corresponding elements.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0011]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3A

Figure 3B

Figure 3C

Figure 4

Figure 5

Figure 6

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0012] The detailed description set forth below in connection with the appended drawings is intended as a description of various configurations and is not intended to represent the only configurations in which the concepts described herein may be practiced. The detailed description includes specific details for thorough understanding of the various concepts. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art, however, that these concepts may be practiced without these specific details. In some instances, well-known structures and components are shown in block diagram form to avoid obscuring such concepts.

[0013] Aspects of the present disclosure provide an exosuit adapted and configured to keep the wearer or user safe. The term "safe" in the context of the present disclosure may include, without limitation, prevention of falls, maintenance of the wearer's stability, limitation of load on joints, etc. While much research in this direction has focused on enhancing performance, aspects of the present disclosure include methods for preventing the user from falling or being injured by a fall.

[0014] As described herein, a user, perhaps an elderly person, may be equipped with a powered exosuit adapted to fit the user's limbs. According to one aspect, the exosuit may include airbag devices assembled at various locations on the suit. The exosuit may include an on-board computing device that can sense, calculate control commands in real time, actuate the limbs and airbags to restore stability (i.e., prevent falls), and minimize injuries resulting from a fall (i.e., protect against falls) if a fall occurs, as described herein.

[0015] For example, if a user stumbles or slips on a wet floor and falls forward, the system can attempt to keep the person on their feet by actuating the legs or adjusting the center of mass backward. If this fails, an airbag on the chest can deploy to move the forearm out of the path of the fall. The amount of force applied to the person's limbs is adjusted according to the person's age, medical condition, etc. The exosuit can similarly deploy small airbags to protect the user and may also have the ability to place the arms in positions that assist the user, especially an elderly user, in getting up without assistance. The exosuit can similarly include software and hardware that has the ability to communicate with a healthcare provider and notify the provider of the fall or potential injury.

[0016] Figure 1 depicts an image diagram 100 of a falling person 102 according to one aspect of the present disclosure. When person 102 slips on ice or some other surface, loses balance, and falls forward, person 102 may instinctively and unconsciously extend their arms and hands 106 to brace for impact against the ground 105 or some other surface. Person 102 may instinctively act to absorb the impact using their own arms, wrists, and hands 106 and reduce or prevent their head 104 from hitting the ground 105. Similarly, if person 102 is about to fall backward, person 102 can extend their arms, wrists, and hands 106 backward to brace and absorb the impact with the ground 105, perhaps avoiding a hard collision of their head, back, or buttocks with the ground 105.

[0017] Unfortunately, especially in the elderly, the arms, wrists, and hands have low shock-absorbing ability, are often highly likely to suffer serious injuries, and often prevent the fallen person from getting up after the fall. Aspects of the present disclosure ideally can not only prevent a fall in a first instance but also provide a wearable exosuit that can connect the body of the wearer, including limbs such as the arms, wrists, hands, neck, etc., to positions that can minimize injury from a fall.

[0018] Figure 2 is an image diagram 200 of a person 102 wearing an exosuit 202 according to one aspect of the present disclosure. According to one aspect, the exosuit 202 may include a wearable suit or device with articulated upper limbs 205 and articulated lower limbs 207. The articulated upper limbs 205 can include a shoulder joint 208, an elbow joint 209, and a wrist joint 206 operably coupled to a core unit 210 and a waist unit 212. The articulated lower limbs 207 can include a knee joint 211 and an ankle joint 213 operably coupled to the core unit 210 and the waist unit 212. Each joint of the exosuit 202 can be configured to generally align with the corresponding joint of the user. Each joint can include up to six degrees of freedom to allow for rotations and movements similar to those of the corresponding user joint. The exosuit 202 can similarly include a head / neck unit 204 operably coupled to the core unit 210.

[0019] According to one aspect, the exosuit 202 can include additional robotic structural and operational components, including but not limited to motors, servos, struts, braces, etc., as known in the art. Such structural and operational components help physically articulate the exosuit according to the parameters and architecture discussed herein. For example, the exosuit can include structural and operational components configured to move, rotate, and otherwise position each part of the user's body to achieve the fall prevention and protection architecture described in the present disclosure.

[0020] Figure 3A depicts an image diagram 300A of a person 102 falling according to one aspect of the present disclosure. According to one aspect, for example, an elderly person 102 may wear the exosuit 202 for its support purposes including improving mobility, preventing falls or preventing injuries. As depicted in Figure 3A, the person 102 has started to fall backward towards the ground 105. The person 102 may instinctively extend their arms backward and downward towards the ground 105 in an attempt to brace themselves against the impact of the fall or to cushion the impact. However, such movements can increase the risk of injury to the hands, wrists, elbows or shoulders of this person 102.

[0021] According to one aspect, as depicted in the image diagram of Figure 3B, the exosuit 202 may act to position the person 102 in a position designed to minimize injury when a fall is detected and detected. For example, the exosuit 202 can activate the core unit 210 and the waist unit 212 to rotate the user's waist so that the user's hip rather than the waist hits the ground 105 head-on. Furthermore, the exosuit 202 can connect the user's arms upward or outward to prevent the arms from being used as braces and thus prevent harmful impacts on the hands, wrists, elbows or shoulders. The head / neck unit 204 can similarly act to raise the user's head and neck to prevent or minimize a collision with the ground 105.

[0022] While the exosuit 202 positions the user in such a way that the user's hips bear most of the impact from the fall, the more delicate and injury-prone body parts are moved away from the impact zone. The user's hips contain more fat and muscle tissue surrounding the bones and joints, and for this reason, this body part is a more desirable body part to receive the impact from the ground.

[0023] According to one aspect, the exosuit can be equipped with one or more airbags 214 that deploy when a fall is detected and thereby provide a cushion between the user's body and the ground 105. The figure in FIG. 3B depicts a backward fall onto the user's buttocks and thus the deployment of the airbag 214 between the buttocks and the ground 105, but the airbag can be positioned within any part of the exosuit and around any part of the user's body so as to be selectively deployed depending on the detected direction of the fall and the potentially impacted parts of the user's body. For example, if a person 102 tumbles down a flight of stairs, the exosuit can prevent serious injuries resulting from the fall by deploying one or more airbags prior to the impact to cushion the blow. According to one aspect, as described herein, the exosuit can similarly actuate the movement of the user's arms and legs in a timely manner during a fall to reduce the speed of the fall and prevent injuries to the head, spine, wrists, etc.

[0024] Furthermore, although the exosuits 202 in FIGS. 3A and 3B depict an exosuit that controls the upper body of a person 102, those skilled in the art will recognize that the exosuit can be extended to include the user's legs. The size and coverage of the exosuit can depend on the user, the user's specific physical or health-related factors or other issues. The exosuit 202 described herein can be adapted, maximized or minimized to cover and control any number of joints, extremities or other body parts of the user.

[0025] According to one aspect, the exosuit is configured to assist in preventing falls, and thus potential injuries due to falls can be eliminated. FIG. 3C depicts a fall sequence 300C over time t, where person 102 begins to fall, and the exosuit assists the person 102 in moving their body in a manner that counters the fall and regains their balance when a potential fall is detected. As depicted in FIG. 3C, at time (a), the user may be standing, walking, or otherwise moving normally. At time (b), the user may start to slip, lose balance, or otherwise start to fall forward. At time (c), person 102 enters a falling state, and the exosuit can react to correct the fall and pull the person back from the fall. The exosuit 202 can shift the arms, waist, head, or other body parts operably coupled in the direction of the fall. At time (d), the exosuit may be returning person 102 to a more upright position by actuating the limbs, core unit, waist unit, and / or head / neck unit. At time (e), the exosuit can continue to actuate the user's body to re - establish the user's balance and equilibrium as shown at time (f) against the falling motion or the initial reverse - falling motion. Thus, the exosuit can prevent person 102 from falling and, consequently, prevent any injuries.

[0026] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a hardware implementation for a fall prevention / protection system 400 according to an aspect of the present disclosure. The fall prevention / protection system 400 can be a component of an exoskeleton, exosuit, garment, robotic device, or other device. For example, as shown in FIG. 4, the fall prevention / protection system 400 can be a component of a wearable exosuit 428. Since other devices including garments and other devices are similarly contemplated for use with the fall prevention / protection system 400, the aspects of the present disclosure are not limited to the fall prevention / protection system 400 being a component of the exosuit 428.

[0027] The fall prevention / protection system 400 can generally be implemented using a bus architecture represented by bus 430. Bus 430 can include any number of interconnecting buses and bridges, depending on the specific application area and overall design constraints of the fall prevention / protection system 400. Bus 430 can link together various circuits, including one or more processors and / or hardware modules represented by processor 420, communication module 422, location module 418, sensor module 402, actuation module 426, planning module 424, and computer-readable medium 414. Bus 430 can similarly link various other circuits such as a timing source, peripherals, voltage regulators, and power management circuits, which are well known in the art and thus will not be described in further detail.

[0028] The fall prevention / protection system 400 can include a transceiver 416 coupled to processor 420, sensor module 402, exosuit control system module 408, communication module 422, location module 418, actuation module 426, planning module 424, and computer-readable medium 414. Transceiver 416 is coupled to antenna 434. Transceiver 416 communicates with various other devices over a transmission medium. For example, transceiver 416 can send and receive commands via transmission to and from a server or remote device, such as a monitoring service. As another example, transceiver 416 can transmit status, data, statistics, and other information from exosuit control system module 308 to a server (not shown).

[0029] The exosuit control system module 408 can include a processor 420 coupled to a computer-readable medium 414. The processor 420 can perform processing, including the execution of software stored on the computer-readable medium 414 that provides functionality according to the present disclosure. The software, when executed by the processor 420, causes the fall prevention / protection system 400 to perform various functions described for any of the specific devices, such as the exosuit 428 or modules 402, 408, 414, 416, 418, 420, 422, 424, 426. The computer-readable medium 414 can also be used to store data that is manipulated by the processor 420 when the software is executed.

[0030] The sensor module 402 may be used to obtain measurement values via different sensors such as a first sensor 406, a second sensor 404, and a third sensor 410. The first sensor 406 may be a motion sensor, such as an accelerometer, a gyroscope, an inertial measurement unit, etc. The second sensor may include a vision sensor, such as a stereo camera, a red-green-blue (RGB) camera, LIDAR, or RADAR. The third sensor 404 may be a health sensor such as a heart rate monitor, a blood oxygen sensor, etc. The health sensor may be configured to provide the health information of the user after a fall to an external or healthcare provider via the transceiver 416 or the communication module 422. Of course, for any of the sensors 404, 406, 410, other types of sensors such as thermal sensors, sonars, and / or lasers are also contemplated, so the present disclosure is not limited to the sensors described above. The measurement values of the sensors 404, 406, 410, 406 may be used in combination with the computer-readable medium 414 to implement the functionality described herein, and may be processed by one or more of the processor 420, the sensor module 402, the object tracking module 408, the communication module 422, the location module 418, the actuation module 426, and the planning module 424. In one configuration, the data captured by the first sensor 406, the second sensor 304, and the third sensor 406 may be transmitted to an external device via the transceiver 416. The sensors 404, 406, 410 may be coupled to the exosuit 428 or may be in communication with the vehicle 428.

[0031] The location module 418 can be used to determine the location of the exosuit 428. For example, the location module 418 can use the Global Positioning System (GPS) to determine the location of the exosuit 428. For example, the fall prevention / protection system 400 may have the ability to communicate with a remote monitoring service such as an external service or other healthcare provider. When a fall is detected or triggered, the fall prevention / protection system 400 may transmit the location of the exosuit 428 so that the service can easily identify the location of the user and send assistance to the user.

[0032] The communication module 422 can be used to facilitate communication via the transceiver 416. For example, the communication module 422 can be configured to provide communication capabilities via different wireless protocols such as Bluetooth (registered trademark), Wi-Fi, Long-Term Evolution (LTE), 3G, 5G, etc. The communication module can likewise be configured to establish a communication channel between a healthcare provider such as a physician, an emergency room, or an emergency operator and the user. The communication module can establish communication with a healthcare provider through a connection with the user's phone, an on-board communication device, etc. when a severe injury or lack of vital signs is detected. The communication module 422 can likewise be used to communicate with other components of the exosuit 428 that are not modules of the exosuit control system module 408.

[0033] The actuation module 426 can be used to promote and control the actuation of the exosuit 428. As an example, the actuation module 426 can control the movement of the limbs, the core unit, the waist unit, the head / neck unit, and / or other movable components of the exosuit 428. As another example, the actuation module 426 may be in communication with the power source of the exosuit 428 such as a battery.

[0034] The fall prevention / protection system 400 can likewise include a planning module 424 for planning a response to a detected or potential fall and controlling the actuation of the exosuit 428 via the actuation module 426. The planning module 424 can include a set of instructions or setpoints that define how the exosuit 428 can respond when actuated. For example, in response to a signal from any of the sensors 404, 406, 410 that detail the direction, speed, and orientation of the user's movement, the planning module can respond with corrective or preventive measures to prevent a fall or protect the user during a fall.

[0035] In one configuration, the planning module 424 can include or provide a predicted response to a fall according to user preferences or profiles defined or set according to health factors. For example, assuming that the exosuit 202, after or during a fall, due to an existing back injury, a specified profile such as landing on the side or landing on the seat may be more preferable than landing on the back, the user can be positioned in a position where they can easily get up. Similarly, if the user has a bad back or has had a backache before, the planning module can define a profile configured to position the user on the seat or on the buttocks either during or after a fall to avoid a large impact on the back as much as possible. The planning module 424 as well as other modules described herein can be software modules that execute within the processor 420 and reside or are stored within the computer-readable medium 414, one or more hardware modules coupled to the processor 420, or some combination thereof.

[0036] The exosuit control system module 408 can be in communication with the sensor module 402, the transceiver 416, the processor 420, the communication module 422, the location module 418, the actuation module 426, the planning module 424, and the computer-readable medium 414. In one configuration, the exosuit control system module 408 can receive sensor data from the sensor module 402. The sensor module 402 can receive sensor data from the sensors 404, 406, 410. According to aspects of the present disclosure, the sensor module 402 can filter data to remove noise, encode data, decode data, merge data, or perform other functions. In an alternative configuration, the exosuit control system module 408 can receive sensor data directly from the sensors 404, 406, 410.

[0037] As shown in FIG. 4, the exosuit control system module 408 may be in communication with a planning module 424 and an actuation module 426 to detect, analyze, and actuate the exosuit 428 in accordance with the sensed user movement. As described herein, the exosuit control system module 408 may analyze data from the sensor module 402 and others to detect a fall, a potential fall, the position of the user before or after a fall, or the health condition of the user as described herein.

[0038] FIG. 5 depicts a flowchart 500 of a fall protection / prevention operation according to an aspect of the present disclosure. According to one aspect, the system can define a set of highly personalized user preferences and health factors, as shown in block 510. For example, the system can be personalized for a user having certain health conditions, age restrictions, or mobility limitations. These limitations may be included in a user profile that can define how the system responds to a potential or actual fall. For example, a user with a bad or painful back can include a profile that provides information to the system to connect the user's limbs and torso so as to avoid hitting the back hard on the ground during a fall. Similarly, if one of the user's arms or legs is stronger due to known physical conditions, the system can rely on that information to appropriately connect the user's limbs to compensate for the lack of strength.

[0039] According to one aspect, the control system and / or the planning module can determine whether to initiate a fall prevention operation as shown in block 505 or to initiate a fall protection operation as shown in block 520. The fall prevention operation can dynamically adjust the user's limbs according to inertial acceleration, joint position, and detection by an on-board controller of any external force (or an estimated value of the force) to keep the user in an upright state. The control system can be designed to optimize a cost function that takes into account the maximum limb force applied, the maximum limb speed, and joint limits to stabilize the user. This requires a rough model of the user, and the back resistance to the suit's actuators via force sensors assembled on each limb on the suit itself can be considered. According to one aspect, the user can be treated as an unmodeled disturbance signal. This may similarly require sensors for measuring joint angles and an inertial measurement unit (IMU) for measuring the acceleration of the body. This control can be performed online using model predictive control (MPC) or a similar optimal control method.

[0040] The fall prevention module may further include stability envelope estimation. The stability envelope may include model-based analysis that defines the conditions and boundaries of the user's stable state. For example, the stability envelope may be based on the concept of the zero moment point. The zero moment point defines the point at which the dynamic reaction force at the contact point between the ground and the foot generates no moment in the horizontal direction. It is the point at which the sum of the horizontal inertia and gravity is equal to zero. According to one aspect, the zero moment point can be used to maintain the determined center of mass within the support polygon based on the foot position and other parameters. The concept of the zero moment point can be extended to explain dynamic walking, but at the expense of using a method with a higher computational cost. For example, when measuring the stability envelope using the zero moment point, there are parameters to be estimated, including the user's mass, center of gravity, and acceleration of the center of gravity. Some of the parameters can be determined in whole or in part by the user, for example, by entering such information within the application. Other parameters can be estimated online.

[0041] The system can drive the operation of the exosuit to keep the user within the stability envelope and thus prevent falls. However, if the system detects movement beyond the boundaries of the stability envelope, as shown in block 510, a fall detection operation can be executed. Detection of a fall beyond the deviation from the stability envelope can be defined by model-based estimation, given information from sensors including the user's acceleration, movement angle, and direction. This determination may likewise be based on the zero moment point detailed above.

[0042] When a fall is detected, the fall classification operation shown in block 515 can determine the type of the occurring fall according to a number of predefined fall categories, including but not limited to falls from the face, falls from the side, falls from the back, falls from the head, etc. Once the fall is classified, the planning module can execute the fall protection operation shown in block 520.

[0043] According to one aspect, during the fall protection operation, the system can adjust the limbs using a controller. However, rather than optimizing for stability, the control objective can be to optimize for the impact strength of various parts of the body. According to one aspect, for this purpose, it is possible to minimize a cost that is a weighted sum of various terms that consider the impact force of a specific part of the body. For example, the suit may be well-suited to minimizing the forces during impacts to the head, wrists, knees, back, chest, hips, and shoulders, where the hips are given a relatively small weight (and thus it is preferable for more force to be applied), and the head is given a relatively large weight (and thus it is preferable for less force to be applied or no force to be applied at all). A human fall model may be required for fall protection and can be solved using MPC.

[0044] The fall protection operation can define and control the positions of the limbs so as to minimize any injuries resulting from the fall. For example, if the user is sensed to be falling backward, the fall protection operation can command the system to position the arms and head forward. If the user is falling forward, the fall protection operation can command the system to position the hands forward and twist the user's torso to land on the shoulders. Additionally, according to one embodiment, one or more airbags can be deployed to prevent injury.

[0045] According to one aspect of the present disclosure, the method of protecting a user by an exosuit device can be fine-tuned for a specific person via a phone or computer application. The user can input their health status including their age, weight, gender, physical disability, and pregnancy status. If the user is falling or in danger, the exosuit can respond in a way that keeps the user safe without applying excessive stress to delicate parts of the body either by sudden movements and shakes caused by the suit or the impact of the fall itself. For example, the system can protect pregnant women by prioritizing landing on their limbs rather than their torso. For elderly people suffering from osteoporosis, the suit can prioritize landing in a way that reduces stress on the bones, especially the spine. The system can similarly take into account statistics related to injuries received from falls for a specific age group and then consider preventing what is most likely to cause debilitation in a fall protection cost function.

[0046] After performing the fall prevention / protection operation, the system can perform a post-fall classification as shown in block 525. According to one aspect, the system can determine the orientation of the user, such as face-down, side-down, back-down, etc. Such classification can be performed as part of an effort to assist the user in the recovery operation from the fall as shown in block 530. The system can position the user's limbs in a position to assist the user in recovering from the fall whether it is to return to a standing position or to redirect to a safe position where further assistance will come.

[0047] According to another aspect of the fall recovery operation, the system can execute one or more diagnostic procedures. The system can assess the impact on the suit by checking the state of the suit itself, and similarly, can assess the possible damage to the user by calculating the force applied to the user during the fall. Further, the system can advise the user to see a doctor if necessary or can directly call the emergency number (119) if an emergency is recognized. According to another aspect, the system can contact the manufacturer to report its own damage for maintenance.

[0048] According to another aspect of the present disclosure, a method for preventing injury due to a fall using an exosuit is provided. FIG. 6 is a flowchart 600 of an exemplary method for countering a fall according to one aspect of the present disclosure. As shown in block 602, a user profile is loaded by the exosuit. As described herein, the exosuit can include memory for storing such a user profile, and processing hardware and software for loading the user profile. The user profile can include, according to one aspect, user-specific information and parameters that the exosuit should use to protect the user when countering a fall event.

[0049] As shown in block 604, the exosuit can detect motion events through one or more sensors coupled to the frame of the exosuit. As described herein, the sensors and the exosuit processor can be configured to detect and determine motion events based on a stability envelope and a user profile that define the normal posture of the user. If the detected motion indicates a motion that exceeds the stability envelope, the exosuit can classify the motion event according to one or more profiles, including, for example, a fall prevention event or a fall protection event as shown in block 606. When the system classifies the motion as a fall prevention event, it can initiate a fall prevention motion to counter the motion event. For example, if the system determines that the user's motion indicates a high likelihood of falling but is correctable, it can initiate the motion of the exosuit and one or more robotic joints of the exosuit to counter the motion and help the user re-establish a balanced and stable position.

[0050] When the system classifies the motion event as a fall protection event, it can initiate a fall protection motion as shown within block 610. For example, if the motion event exceeds the stability envelope and a fall is certain, the system can initiate a fall protection motion. As described herein, the fall protection motion can include the exosuit operating its one or more robotic joints to manipulate the user's torso and limbs to a position where injury to the user during a fall can be minimized. This can include raising the user's arms to avoid harmful impacts to the wrists, raising the user's head to brace, or other such motions described herein.

[0051] After a fall prevention or fall protection movement, as shown in block 612, the system can initiate a fall recovery operation. As described herein, the fall recovery operation can include positioning the user in a position to assist the user in standing up or waiting for further assistance. This can similarly include transmitting requests and other information to other providers, including medical providers or physicians, hospitals, emergency operators, first responders, etc. Diagnostic and analysis information can be saved and transmitted to the manufacturer or other service providers.

[0052] Although aspects of the present disclosure describe an exosuit to be worn by an elderly or physically disabled person, the present disclosure is not limited thereto. For example, the exosuit system described herein can be implemented for the safety of pedestrians. If a wearer crossing a street is at risk of or has already collided with a vehicle or other road, the exosuit can respond to minimize any injuries sustained from the impact, as described herein.

[0053] As another example of the practical application of the disclosed system in a construction or factory environment, there are advantageous conditions for using the deployment of the exosuit's deployable airbag or strategic limbs to prevent or mitigate injuries received from collisions or falls with moving parts or machinery.

[0054] Based on the teachings, those skilled in the art should recognize that the scope of the present disclosure is intended to cover all aspects of the present disclosure, regardless of whether it is implemented independently of or in combination with any other aspect of the invention. For example, it is possible to implement an apparatus or carry out a method using any number of the described aspects. Furthermore, the scope of the present disclosure is intended to cover such apparatus or methods practiced using other structures, functionalities, or combinations of structures and functionalities in addition to or other than the various aspects of the present disclosure described. It should be understood that any aspect of the present disclosure can be embodied by one or more elements of the claims.

[0055] The term "exemplary" is used herein to mean "serving as an example, instance, or illustration." Any aspect described herein as "exemplary" should not necessarily be considered as preferred or advantageous over other aspects.

[0056] Although specific aspects are described herein, many variations and substitutions of these aspects fall within the scope of the present disclosure. Although some merits and advantages of the preferred aspects are mentioned, the scope of the present disclosure is not intended to be limited to specific merits, uses, or purposes. Rather, the aspects of the present disclosure are intended to be widely applicable to different technologies, system configurations, networks, and protocols, some of which are shown as examples in the following description of the figures and the preferred aspects. The detailed description and the drawings are illustrative rather than limiting of the present disclosure, and the scope of the present disclosure is defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

[0057] As used herein, the term "determine" encompasses various actions. For example, "determine" may include calculate, compute, process, derive, inquire, refer (referring within a table, database, or another data structure), confirm, etc. Further, "determine" may also include receive (e.g., receive information), access (e.g., access data in a memory), etc. Additionally, "determine" may also include solve, select, choose, verify, etc.

[0058] As used herein, the phrase referring to "at least one of" a list of items means any combination of these items, including a single member. As an example, "at least one of a, b, or c" is intended to cover a, b, c, a - b, a - c, b - c, and a - b - c.

[0059] The various illustrative logical blocks, modules, and circuits described in connection with the present disclosure may be implemented or carried out using a processor specially configured to perform the functions discussed in the present disclosure. The processor may be a neural network processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array signal (FPGA), or other programmable logic device (PLD), discrete gates or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein. Alternatively, the processing system may include one or more neuromorphic processors for implementing the neuron models and nervous system models described herein. The processor may be a microprocessor, a controller, a microcontroller, or a state machine specially configured as described herein. The processor may likewise be implemented as a combination of computer devices, such as a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, multiple microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core, or other special configurations as described herein.

[0060] The steps of the methods or algorithms described in connection with this disclosure may be embodied directly in hardware, in a software module executed by a processor, or in a combination of the two. A storage device or machine-readable medium may include a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), a flash memory, an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), a register, a hard disk, a removable disk, a CD-ROM, or other optical disk storage, a magnetic disk storage, or any other medium that can be used to carry or store the desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and that is accessible by a computer. Software modules may reside in a storage device or machine-readable medium, including any of the above media. A software module may comprise a single instruction or many instructions and may be distributed across different programs, different code segments throughout a plurality of different programs, and across multiple storage media. A storage medium may be coupled to a processor such that the processor can read information from, and write information to, the storage medium. In alternative embodiments, the storage medium may be integral to the processor.

[0061] The methods disclosed herein include one or more steps or actions for achieving the described methods. The method steps and / or actions may be interchangeable without departing from the scope of the claims. That is, the order and / or use of specific steps and / or actions may be modified without departing from the scope of the claims, unless the specific order of the steps or actions is specified.

[0062] The described functionality may be implemented in the form of hardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented in hardware, an exemplary hardware configuration may include a processing system within a device. The processing system may be implemented using a bus architecture. The bus can include any number of interconnecting buses and bridges depending on the specific application area of the processing system and the overall design constraints. The bus can link together various circuits including a processor, a machine-readable medium, and a bus interface. The bus interface may be used, among other things, to connect a network adapter to the processing system via the bus. The network adapter can be used to implement signal processing functions. In some aspects, a user interface (e.g., keypad, display, mouse, joystick, etc.) can also be connected to the bus in a similar manner. The bus can also link together various other circuits such as a timing source, peripheral devices, voltage regulators, power management circuits, etc., which are well-known in the art and thus will not be described further.

[0063] The processor may be responsible for processing, including the management of the bus and the execution of software stored on the machine-readable medium. Software shall be considered to mean instructions, data, or any combination thereof, whether referred to as software, firmware, middleware, microcode, described as a hardware description language, or otherwise.

[0064] In a hardware implementation, the machine-readable medium can be part of a processing system separate from the processor. However, as will be readily appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art, the machine-readable medium or any portion thereof may be external to the processing system. By way of example, the machine-readable medium can include a transmission line, a carrier wave modulated by data, and / or a computer product separate from the device, all of which can be accessed by the processor through a bus interface. Alternatively or additionally, the machine-readable medium or any portion thereof may be incorporated within the processor, as is the case with a cache and / or a dedicated register file. Although the various components described may be described as having specific locations, such as local components, it is also possible to configure them in various forms, such as as part of a distributed computer system.

[0065] The machine-readable medium can contain a lot of software. Software modules can include a transmission module and a reception module. Each software module may reside within a single storage device or be distributed across multiple storage devices. By way of example, a software module can be loaded from a hard drive into RAM when a trigger event occurs. During the execution of a software module, the processor can load some of the instructions into the cache to increase the access speed. Subsequently, for execution by the processor, one or more cache lines can be loaded into a special-purpose register file. When referring to the functionality of a software module hereinafter, such functionality is to be understood as being implemented by the processor when executing instructions from the software module. Furthermore, it should be recognized that aspects of the present disclosure result in an improvement in the functionality of a processor, a computer, a machine, or other systems implementing such aspects.

[0066] When implemented in software, the functions can be stored or transmitted on a computer-readable medium as one or more instructions or codes. The computer-readable medium includes both computer storage media and communication media, including any storage medium that facilitates the transfer of a computer program from one place to another.

[0067] Furthermore, it should be recognized that modules and / or other suitable means for performing the methods and techniques described herein can be downloaded and / or otherwise obtained by a user terminal and / or a base station where applicable. For example, such a device can be coupled to a server to facilitate the transfer of means for performing the methods described herein. Alternatively, the various methods described herein can be obtained via a storage means, and in this way, the user terminal and / or the base station can obtain the various methods when the storage means is coupled to or provided to the device. Moreover, it is possible to utilize any other suitable technique for providing the methods and techniques described herein to the device.

[0068] It should be understood that the claims are not limited to the exact configurations and components exemplified above. Various modifications, changes, and variations can be made to the arrangement, operation, and details of the above-described methods and apparatuses without departing from the scope of the claims. The invention disclosed in this specification includes the following aspects. 〔Aspect 1〕 A frame, at least one robotic joint operably coupled to the frame, at least one sensor coupled to the frame and configured to detect movement of the frame, a controller coupled to the at least one robotic joint and the at least one sensor, detecting an event from the movement of the frame, activating the at least one robotic joint in response to the event, a controller configured as such, a wearable device including the above. 〔Aspect 2〕 The wearable device according to Aspect 1, wherein activating the at least one robotic joint includes activating the at least one robotic joint to counteract the movement of the frame. 〔Aspect 3〕 The wearable device according to Aspect 2, wherein activating the at least one robotic joint includes returning the frame to a stable position. 〔Aspect 4〕 The wearable device according to Aspect 2, wherein the event includes movement of the frame beyond a stability envelope. 〔Aspect 5〕 The wearable device according to Aspect 4, wherein the stability envelope is estimated by model-based analysis. 〔Aspect 6〕 The wearable device according to Aspect 1, wherein the event includes fall detection. 〔Aspect 7〕 The wearable device according to Aspect 6, wherein activating the at least one robotic joint includes moving the frame to a protective position. 〔Aspect 8〕 The wearable device according to Aspect 6, further including an airbag coupled to the frame, and the controller is further configured to deploy the airbag upon detection of the event. 〔Aspect 9〕 The wearable device according to Aspect 1, wherein the frame includes an exoskeleton configured to be worn by a user. 〔Aspect 10〕 The wearable device according to Aspect 9, further including a plurality of robotic joints coupled to the frame, and each robotic joint corresponds to a joint of the exoskeleton. 〔Aspect 11〕 The controller is further configured to detect a second event from the end of the movement of the frame, activate the at least one robotic joint in response to the second event, The wearable device according to aspect 1, configured as such. 〔Aspect 12〕 The wearable device according to aspect 11, wherein actuating the at least one robotic joint in response to the second event includes actuating the frame to a recovery position. 〔Aspect 13〕 The wearable device according to aspect 1, further comprising a communication device configured to transmit an alert upon detection of the event. 〔Aspect 14〕 The controller further detects the event and actuates the at least one robotic joint in response to the first event according to a user profile. The wearable device according to aspect 1, configured as such. 〔Aspect 15〕 The wearable device according to aspect 14, wherein the user profile includes user-specific information related to physical predispositions. 〔Aspect 16〕 The wearable device according to aspect 15, wherein the physical predispositions include a health condition. 〔Aspect 17〕 The wearable device according to aspect 1, wherein the at least one robotic joint includes one or more of a shoulder joint, an elbow joint, a wrist joint, a waist unit, a knee joint, an ankle joint, and a head / neck unit. 〔Aspect 18〕 In a method for countering a fall by a user, loading a user profile including one or more user preferences, detecting a motion event by a sensor coupled to a frame, classifying the motion event according to data obtained from the sensor, and actuating a robotic joint coupled to the frame in response to the event based on the classification and the user profile. The method includes. 〔Aspect 19〕 Classifying the motion event as a fall prevention event, wherein the fall prevention event is defined by the motion event exceeding a stability envelope. is further included, Actuating the robotic joint includes countering the motion of the frame to return the frame to a stable position, according to the method of aspect 18. 〔Aspect 20〕 Classifying the motion event as a fall event, and actuating the robotic joint to move the frame to a protection position. is further included, according to the method of aspect 18.

Claims

1. A frame, at least one robotic joint operably coupled to the frame, at least one sensor coupled to the frame and configured to detect movement of the frame, a memory storing a user profile of a user, the user profile including the user's health status, a controller coupled to the at least one robotic joint and the at least one sensor, detecting a first event from the movement of the frame, classifying the first event as one of a fall prevention event or a fall protection event when the movement of the frame exceeds a stability envelope defining a normal body position of the user based on the user profile, responsive to detecting a fall prevention event, actuating the at least one robotic joint to oppose the movement of the frame, responsive to detecting a fall protection event, actuating the at least one robotic joint to a protection position, a controller configured as such, a wearable device comprising.

2. Actuating the at least one robotic joint includes returning the frame to a stable position, the wearable device according to claim 1.

3. The stability envelope is estimated by model-based analysis, the wearable device according to claim 1.

4. Further comprising an airbag coupled to the frame, the controller further configured to deploy the airbag upon detection of the first event, the wearable device according to claim 1.

5. The frame includes an exoskeleton configured to be worn by a user, the wearable device according to claim 1.

6. Further comprising a plurality of robotic joints coupled to the frame, each robotic joint corresponding to a joint of the exoskeleton, the plurality of robotic joints including one or more of a shoulder joint, an elbow joint, a wrist joint, a waist unit, a knee joint, an ankle joint, and a head / neck unit, the wearable device according to claim 5.

7. The controller further, detecting a second event from the end of the movement of the frame, actuating the at least one robotic joint in response to the second event, configured as such, the wearable device according to claim 1.

8. Actuating the at least one robotic joint in response to the second event includes actuating the frame to a recovery position, the wearable device of claim 7.

9. The wearable device of claim 1, further comprising a communication device configured to transmit an alert upon detection of the first event.

10. In a method of countering a user fall, loading a user profile including one or more user preferences; detecting a motion event by a sensor coupled to a frame; when the motion of the frame exceeds a stability envelope defining a normal body position of the user based on the user profile, classifying the motion event as one of a fall prevention event or a fall protection event according to data obtained from the sensor; actuating a robotic joint coupled to the frame to counter the motion of the frame in response to detecting a fall prevention event; actuating the robotic joint coupled to the frame to a protection position in response to detecting a fall protection event; comprising a method.

11. classifying the motion event as a fall prevention event, wherein the fall prevention event is defined by the motion event exceeding the stability envelope, and actuating the robotic joint includes countering the motion of the frame to return the frame to a stable position, or classifying the motion event as a fall protection event, and actuating the robotic joint includes moving the frame to a protection position, further comprising the method of claim 10.

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