Fabric Walking Assistance Device Weight Friction
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional wearable robots for walking assistance are heavy and can cause skin injuries due to friction, limiting their usability in everyday life and rehabilitation.
Innovation Solution
A walking assistance device utilizing a fabric material to transmit force to the user's body, minimizing weight and friction through a design that includes a driving part and a force transmitting part with a fabric part that unwinds or rewinds to provide auxiliary force.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Force
If conventional wearable robots are manufactured to be heavy to provide sufficient auxiliary force, then the auxiliary force is improved, but the weight increases making it difficult for elderly persons or patients to use in everyday life
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies a fabric part instead of rigid mechanical structures to transmit force. The fabric acts as a flexible medium that can be wound and unwound by a lightweight motor, providing sufficient auxiliary force while keeping the overall device weight low and manageable for elderly users
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces traditional rigid mechanical transmission systems with a fabric-based flexible transmission system. This substitution allows the use of smaller, lighter motors while maintaining effective force transmission to the user's body through the fabric part
2Force
If conventional wearable robots use rigid means to transmit force, then the auxiliary force is sufficient, but friction between the skin and the device causes injury
Solution Approach 1:
The fabric part serves as a flexible intermediate layer between the driving mechanism and the user's skin. This flexible fabric transmission system eliminates direct contact between rigid components and skin, preventing friction injuries while still effectively transmitting auxiliary force
Solution Approach 2:
The fabric part acts as an intermediary element that mediates between the driving force and the user's body. It transmits the auxiliary force while providing a soft, comfortable interface that prevents direct friction and injury to the skin
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The device provides an improved auxiliary force for walking while minimizing weight and preventing skin injuries, offering enhanced usability and comfort for users.
Implementation Method 1
an elastic body provided between the contact surface and the driving housing to provide an elastic force to the contact surface
Implementation Method 2
a fan configured to release heat generated in the driving housing to the outside
Data Source
AI summary
A walking assistance device utilizing a fabric according to various embodiments of the present invention is disclosed. The walking assistance device utilizing a fabric includes a driving part configured to generate a driving force and a force transmitting part including a fabric part, which is connected to the driving part, and configured to transmit a force to a part of a user's body by unwinding or rewinding due to the driving force applied from the driving part.