Exoskeleton Posture Control via Adaptive Support Modes
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional assistive exoskeletons are heavy, difficult to don, and require multiple assistants for transportation and adjustment, leading to durability issues and limited user mobility due to their weight and complex setup processes.
Innovation Solution
An adaptive assistive and rehabilitative device (AARD) that supports an exoskeleton, allowing for easy transportation, automatic posture adjustment, and reduced load during storage, featuring a main controller that manages operation modes to space the exoskeleton from the ground during movement, adjust angles for wearing, and contact the ground during storage, thereby reducing the need for multiple assistants and prolonging device lifespan.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Force
If the exoskeleton is made with a multi-joint skeletal structure and metal material to provide assistive force, then the assistive capability is improved, but the weight increases to tens of kilograms or more
Solution Approach 1:
The exoskeleton is divided into multiple separable components including a wearable unit with motors and a separate frame unit. This segmentation allows the heavy components to be distributed and transported independently, reducing the burden on the user during movement while maintaining the full assistive capability when assembled.
Solution Approach 2:
A wheeled platform is introduced as an intermediary device to transport the heavy frame unit. The platform includes a wheel that can move the frame unit forward, rearward, leftward, and rightward, eliminating the need for manual carrying and reducing the physical burden on users and assistants.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the frame unit is manually operated to adjust the height of walking assistive shafts for rehabilitation training, then the adaptability to user needs is improved, but the complexity of operation increases and requires additional assistants
Solution Approach 1:
The wearable unit is equipped with motors that enable the user to independently adjust the height of the walking assistive shafts. This self-service capability eliminates the need for assistants to manually operate the frame unit, simplifying the operation while maintaining full adaptability to user rehabilitation needs.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the walking assistive shafts are adjusted frequently during rehabilitation training, then the adaptability to training requirements is improved, but the durability of the drive system and joints decreases due to ground collisions
Solution Approach 1:
The system allows dynamic adjustment of the walking assistive shafts during operation. The motors in the wearable unit enable real-time height adjustments without requiring the shafts to be physically raised and lowered, reducing mechanical stress and ground collisions while maintaining training adaptability.
4Device complexity
If the exoskeleton is transported without a separate transportation device, then the device complexity is reduced, but multiple people are required to carry the exoskeleton
Solution Approach 1:
The frame unit serves multiple functions: it provides structural support for the exoskeleton, acts as a transportation platform when equipped with wheels, and serves as a base for the wearable unit. This multi-functionality eliminates the need for separate transportation devices while enabling easy movement of the heavy frame unit by a single person.
Data Source
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AI summary
A wearable assistive device, e.g. an exoskeleton, having a posture controlled depending on different modes of an adaptive and/or rehabilitative device on which the exoskeleton is supported, is disclosed herein. The exoskeleton may include a main controller to automatically control the posture depending on 'a moving mode', 'a wearing mode', and 'a storage mode' of the adaptive and/or rehabilitative device. An operation mode may be determined depending on a height change or a movement of the adaptive and/or rehabilitative device, and an operation of a drive based on whether the exoskeleton contacts a ground may be controlled.