Study On The Design And Control Of A Wearable Exoskeleton Leg For Human's Walking Power Augmentation

Integrating humans and robotic machines into one system offers multiple opportunities for creating assistive technologies that can be used in biomedical, industrial, and aerospace applications. A human's ability to perform physical tasks is not limited by intelligence but by physical strength, whereas robotic machines can carry out rigorous tasks such as maneuvering heavy objects easily. It seems, therefore, that combining these two entities, the human and the robot, into one integrated system under the control of the human, may lead to a solution which will benefit from the advantages offered by each subsystem. This is the underlying principle in the design of exoskeleton systems.Exoskeletons for human performance enhancement are controllable and wearable devices that can increase the strength, speed, and endurance of the operator. The human provides control signals for the exoskeleton, whereas the exoskeleton actuators provide most of the power necessary for performing the task. Exoskeleton leg is conceived to be a wearable device to augment human's walking ability and relieve human's physical fatigue caused by excessive walking by feet.In this research, we are devoted to developing a wearable exoskeleton leg for augmentation of human walking ability, which incorporates human as the integral part of the control system and can assist human to cover longer distances for longer periods with over-mounted loads on a physical interface basis. The methodology of designing an anthropomorphic and adaptable exoskeleton leg is discussed, and a hierarchical control system is employed to realize the desired function. In particular, a control strategy based on ANFIS controller is explored, which directly associates the plantar pressure to the displacement of pneumatic cylinder and proves to be promising by software simulation. Currently, the prototype experimental exoskeleton system has been developed to verify our theoretical outcomes and further experiments will be performed on it.The ultimate goal of this project is to provide an insight into the methodology of developing a practical wearable exoskeleton device, which could provide soldiers, fire fighters, disaster relief workers, and other emergency personnel the ability to carry major loads such as food, weaponry, rescue equipment, and communications gear with minimal effort over any type of terrain for extended periods of time.