Shallal Christopher, Li Lu, Nguyen Harrison, Aronshtein Filip, Lee Soo Hyun, Zhu Jian, Thakor Nitish
IEEE Int Conf Rehabil Robot. 2019 Jun;2019:803-808. doi: 10.1109/ICORR.2019.8779404.
A major challenge for upper limb amputees is discomfort due to improper socket fit on the residual limb during daily use of their prosthesis. Our work introduces the implementation of soft robotic actuators into a prosthetic socket. The soft actuators are a type of electrically-powered actuator. The actuator is driven through changes in internal temperature causing actuation due to vapor pressure, which results in high and reliable force outputs. A regression fit was generated to model how the smart polymer's temperature relates to force output, and the model was cross-validated based on training data collected from each actuator. A proportional integral (PI) controller regulated the force exerted by the actuators based off of tactile and temperature feedback. Results showed that a socket system can be integrated with smart polymers and sensors, and demonstrated the ability to control two actuators and reach desired forces from set temperatures.
上肢截肢者面临的一个主要挑战是，在日常使用假肢时，由于残肢上的接受腔适配不当而产生不适。我们的工作介绍了将软机器人致动器应用于假肢接受腔的方法。软致动器是一种电动致动器。该致动器通过内部温度变化来驱动，由于蒸汽压力导致致动，从而产生高且可靠的力输出。生成了一个回归拟合模型，以模拟智能聚合物的温度与力输出之间的关系，并基于从每个致动器收集的训练数据对该模型进行交叉验证。一个比例积分（PI）控制器根据触觉和温度反馈来调节致动器施加的力。结果表明，一个接受腔系统可以与智能聚合物和传感器集成，并展示了控制两个致动器并从设定温度达到所需力的能力。
