IEEE Trans Neural Syst Rehabil Eng. 2020 Oct;28(10):2276-2285. doi: 10.1109/TNSRE.2020.3014408. Epub 2020 Aug 5.
This article presents the H-PULSE, a novel semi-passive upper-limb exoskeleton for worker assistance, with motorized tuning of the assistive level. The H-PULSE presents novel design features compared to other passive industrial exoskeletons for the upper limbs, namely joint angle sensors for measuring shoulder flexion/extension and a novel active mechanism for regulating the assistance level. These features could enhance the effectiveness of the system. Along with the presentation of the exoskeleton design, this article reports on the system experimental evaluation with human subjects. The H-PULSE was assessed in prolonged static overhead tasks under different conditions of assistive support. The set of metrics to evaluate the effects of the device included shoulder muscular activity, heart rate, and subjective user feedback. Results show that the exoskeleton can reduce the users' muscular activity and the heart rate. Subjective questionnaires allowed the assessment of perceived exoskeleton effectiveness. In this study, the H-PULSE exoskeleton was found to be potentially effective in reducing the muscular strain while reducing the global fatigue level during prolonged continuous overhead activities.
本文提出了 H-PULSE，一种新型的半被动上肢外骨骼，用于工人辅助，可对辅助水平进行电动调节。与其他用于上肢的被动工业外骨骼相比，H-PULSE 具有新颖的设计特点，即肩部弯曲/伸展的关节角度传感器和一种用于调节辅助水平的新型主动机构。这些特点可以提高系统的有效性。除了介绍外骨骼设计外，本文还报告了对人体受试者的系统实验评估。在不同辅助支撑条件下，对 H-PULSE 进行了长时间的静态过顶任务评估。评估该装置效果的一套指标包括肩部肌肉活动、心率和主观用户反馈。结果表明，该外骨骼可以降低使用者的肌肉活动和心率。主观问卷调查允许对外骨骼有效性进行评估。在这项研究中，H-PULSE 外骨骼被发现可以在进行长时间连续过顶活动时减轻肌肉紧张，同时降低整体疲劳水平。
