Login / Signup

An Elbow Exoskeleton for Upper Limb Rehabilitation with Series Elastic Actuator and Cable-driven Differential.

Tianyao ChenRafael CasasPeter S Lum
Published in: IEEE transactions on robotics : a publication of the IEEE Robotics and Automation Society (2019)
Movement impairments resulting from neurologic injuries, such as stroke, can be treated with robotic exoskeletons that assist with movement retraining. Exoskeleton designs benefit from low impedance and accurate torque control. We designed a 2 degree-of-freedom tethered exoskeleton that can provide independent torque control on elbow flexion/extension and forearm supination/pronation. Two identical series elastic actuators (SEAs) are used to actuate the exoskeleton. The two SEAs are coupled through a novel cable-driven differential. The exoskeleton is compact and lightweight, with a mass of 0.9 kg. Applied RMS torque errors were less than 0.19 Nm. Benchtop tests demonstrated a torque rise time of approximately 0.1 s, a torque control bandwidth of 3.7 Hz and an impedance of less than 0.03 Nm/deg at 1 Hz. The controller can simulate a stable maximum wall stiffness of 0.45 Nm/deg. The overall performance is adequate for robotic therapy applications and the novelty of the design is discussed.
Keyphrases
  • upper limb
  • photodynamic therapy
  • minimally invasive
  • robot assisted
  • magnetic resonance
  • magnetic resonance imaging
  • computed tomography
  • emergency department
  • light emitting
  • mass spectrometry
  • dual energy