A flexible exoskeleton for hip assistance
Younbaek Lee, Se-gon Roh, Minhyung Lee, Byungjune Choi, Jongwon Lee, Jeonghun Kim, Hyundo Choi, Youngbo Shim
Abstract
This paper proposes a new concept called “a flexible exoskeleton” and presents the design of a wearable walking assistance device to provide physical gait assistance for the elderly. To overcome some limitations of previous wearable walking assistance devices, 3 novel mechanisms are proposed: 1) flexible thigh frames that withstand the designated load direction, 2) an adjustable flexible hip brace surrounding the wearer's body, and 3) slim and backdrivable actuators that minimize the maximum height and resistance. The proposed walking assistance device has reduced metabolic energy consumption by 13.2±4% compared with a free condition.
BibTeX
@inproceedings{iros2017_aflexibleexoskel,
title = {A flexible exoskeleton for hip assistance},
author = {Younbaek Lee and Se-gon Roh and Minhyung Lee and Byungjune Choi and Jongwon Lee and Jeonghun Kim and Hyundo Choi and Youngbo Shim and Yong-Jae Kim},
booktitle = {IROS 2017},
year = {2017}
}