Open AccessSoftGait: compliant walking assistance via pneumatically actuated robot legs
Author(s) -
Koo Donghan,
Kim Byungjin,
Kim KyungSoo,
Kim Soohyun
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
electronics letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.375
H-Index - 146
ISSN - 1350-911X
DOI - 10.1049/el.2013.2155
Subject(s) - robot , computer science , pneumatics , pneumatic actuator , control theory (sociology) , simulation , control engineering , engineering , automotive engineering , actuator , artificial intelligence , mechanical engineering , control (management)
To assist the mobility handicapped, it is necessary to support their body weight in part using an assistive device. Since the human leg can be modelled by a spring during the gait, the assistive device (or robot) should have a certain level of compliance in order to achieve natural gait assistance. A pneumatic cylinder is added in parallel to a leg (which is also a spring) for antigravity with compliance. By simulation, the compliant gravity assistance effectively reduces the required forces and torques at the joints of leg. Using this idea, a prototype of an assistive robot named SoftGait is developed and experiments are performed to verify its efficacy.