12 accepted papers
Kinetic asymmetries in gait caused by neuropathology are a major factor in mobility deficiency. Gait perturbation training has shown promise for rehabilitating neurological gait asymmetry, but the transfer of benefits from treadmill training to overground walking is limited. To enable kinetic gait p
Wearable robotic exoskeletons hold great promise for gait rehabilitation as portable, accessible tools. However, a better understanding of the potential for exoskeletons to elicit neural adaptation-a critical component of neurological gait rehabilitation-is needed. In this study, we investigated whe…
Humans excel at physical interaction despite long feedback delays and low-bandwidth actuators. Yet little is known about how humans manage physical interaction. A quantitative understanding of how they do is critical for designing machines that can safely and effectively interact with humans, e.g. a
The papers in this special section focus on variable impedance control and learning in complex interaction applications. Increasingly, robots are expected to enter various application scenarios and interact with unknown and dynamically changing environments. More specifically, we are expecting robot
Wearable robotic exoskeletons show promise in their ability to provide gait assistance and rehabilitation in real-world contexts. However, a better understanding is needed of how exoskeletons contribute to neural adaptation in locomotion, a critical component of neurological gait rehabilitation. We…
Prior experiments have shown that human gait synchronizes to periodic torque pulses applied about the hip and ankle joints by robotic exoskeletons. Importantly, entrainment occurred even when the pulse period differed slightly from the user’s preferred stride period, making it a viable approach to i…
Restoring healthy kinematics is a critical component of assisting and rehabilitating impaired locomotion. Here we tested whether spatiotemporal gait patterns can be modulated by applying mechanical impedance to hip joints. Using the Samsung GEMS-H exoskeleton, we emulated a virtual spring (positive…
While rehabilitation of upper-limb motor function with human-interactive robots has been met with success, robot-aided locomotor rehabilitation has proven challenging. To inform more effective approaches to robotic gait therapy, it is important to understand neuro-mechanical dynamics and control of…
The locomotion and balance capabilities of bipedal robots have greatly improved in recent years. However, maintaining balance on difficult terrain still poses a significant challenge. In this paper, we examined how humans maintain mediolateral balance when standing on a narrow beam with bare feet an…
Standing on a beam is a challenging motor skill that requires the regulation of upright balance and stability. In this paper, we analyzed the behavior of humans balancing on a narrow beam without footwear. The results revealed high anti-correlation between lumped upper- and lower-body angular moment…
Physical human-robot collaboration is becoming more common, both in industrial and service robotics. Cooperative execution of a task requires intuitive and efficient interaction between both actors. For humans, this means being able to predict and adapt to robot movements. Given that natural human m
For robotic systems to interact with or learn from the actions of surrounding humans, it is important that they can accurately interpret the intention driving human motor actions. Making such interpretations, however, requires the ability to perceive the relevant feature(s) from the observed human b…