A Walking Assist Control with Exoskeleton for Active Prosthetic Leg Motion and Its Evaluation Method in Passive...

This paper presents a force sensorless knee flexion detection and gait assistance system for active prosthetic legs, evaluating its impact on gait characteristics. The proposed method can estimate the ground reaction force without relying on ground strain or friction coefficients by using Reaction Torque Observer (RTOB). In the proposed approach, an exoskeleton devise is mounted to the prosthetic leg and the users utilize it as an active prosthetic leg. Waist trajectory measurement was used to evaluate whole-body movement, comparing gait characteristics in able-bodied individuals, passive prosthetic leg users, and active prosthetic leg users. These analyses contribute to advancing gait assistance evaluation and developing control methods with a small number of sensors for active prosthetic legs.