Design and Testing of a Wearable Lower-Limb Exoskeleton for Investigating Falls Prevention

Area of Science:

• Robotics
• Biomechanics
• Human-Robot Interaction

Background:

• Wearable robots offer potential for fall prevention in older adults.
• Limited understanding of human-robot dynamics and user responses hinders robot functionality.
• Developing effective balance support requires personalized intervention strategies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a wearable lower-limb robot for fall prevention during obstacle navigation.
• To investigate human-robot interactions and user responses to varying robot intervention parameters.
• To explore proactive fall prevention strategies through modulated foot-placement.

Main Methods:

• A novel non-anthropomorphic wearable lower-limb robot with a single active degree of freedom per leg was designed.
• Three participants performed walking trials with different levels of robot intervention.
• Robot-induced changes in stride length and user reactions were measured.

Main Results:

• The robot successfully modulated users' stride length, demonstrating potential for assisted balance.
• User reactions to robot interventions were subject-specific and time-varying.
• User responses significantly influenced the final movement trajectory.

Conclusions:

• Foot-placement modulation by wearable robots can aid balance during obstacle navigation.
• Balance assistance robot controllers must account for personalized user responses for optimal performance.
• Further research is needed to enhance functionality, efficiency, and user comfort in balance support robots.