Annu Int Conf IEEE Eng Med Biol Soc. 2021 Nov;2021:4501-4504. doi: 10.1109/EMBC46164.2021.9630707.
Enhance human walking and running is much more difficult compared to build a machine to help someone with disability. Unpowered ankle-foot exoskeletons are the current development trend due to their lightweight, wearable, and energy-free features, but the huge recognition and energy control system still affects their practicability. To refine the recognition and control system, we designed an unpowered soft ankle-foot exoskeleton with a purely mechanical self-adaptiveness clutch, which can realize the collection and release of energy according to different gait stage. Through switching and closing of this clutch, energy is collected when the ankle is doing negative work and released when the ankle is doing positive work. Results shows the unpowered ankle-foot exoskeleton at the stiffness of 12000 N/m could relieve muscles' load, with reduction of force by 52.3 % and 5.2%, and of power by 44.2% and 7.0%, respectively for soleus and gastrocnemius in simulation.Clinical Relevance-The proposed Unpowered Ankle-Foot Exoskeleton can both reduce muscle forces and powers. Hence, it can be used to assist walking of the elderly, others with neurocognitive disorders or leg diseases.
与为残疾人士制造机器相比，增强人类的步行和跑步能力要困难得多。由于无动力踝足外骨骼具有重量轻、可穿戴和无需能源的特点，因此成为当前的发展趋势，但巨大的识别和能量控制系统仍然影响着它们的实用性。为了完善识别和控制系统，我们设计了一种无动力软踝足外骨骼，它带有纯粹机械自适应离合器，可根据不同的步态阶段实现能量的收集和释放。通过这种离合器的切换和关闭，当脚踝做负功时，能量被收集，当脚踝做正功时，能量被释放。研究结果表明，在 12000N/m 的刚度下，无动力踝足外骨骼可以减轻肌肉的负荷，模拟中比目鱼肌和腓肠肌的力分别降低了 52.3%和 5.2%，功率分别降低了 44.2%和 7.0%。
临床意义-所提出的无动力踝足外骨骼可以降低肌肉的力和功率。因此，它可以用于帮助老年人、神经认知障碍或腿部疾病患者行走。
