ALICE: Conceptual Development of a Lower Limb Exoskeleton Robot Driven by an On-Board Musculoskeletal Simulator.

Manuel Cardona,Cecilia E García Cena,Fernando Serrano,Roque Saltaren

doi:10.3390/s20030789

Abstract

Objective: In this article, we present the conceptual development of a robotics platform, called ALICE (Assistive Lower Limb Controlled Exoskeleton), for kinetic and kinematic gait characterization. The ALICE platform includes a robotics wearable exoskeleton and an on-board muscle driven simulator to estimate the user’s kinetic parameters. Background: Even when the kinematics patterns of the human gait are well studied and reported in the literature, there exists a considerable intra-subject variability in the kinetics of the movements. ALICE aims to be an advanced mechanical sensor that allows us to compute real-time information of both kinetic and kinematic data, opening up a new personalized rehabilitation concept. Methodology: We developed a full muscle driven simulator in an open source environment and validated it with real gait data obtained from patients diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. After that, we designed, modeled, and controlled a 6 DoF lower limb exoskeleton with inertial measurement units and a position/velocity sensor in each actuator. Significance: This novel concept aims to become a tool for improving the diagnosis of pathological gait and to design personalized robotics rehabilitation therapies. Conclusion: ALICE is the first robotics platform automatically adapted to the kinetic and kinematic gait parameters of each patient.

Highlights

Robotics exoskeletons are a technology in continuous development mainly in the medical and military fields
We present the conceptual design of a robotic exoskeleton platform, ALICE, with both capabilities: rehabilitation and augmentation
Data used in the simulation of proposed control law were collected from four patients diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, which is a neuro-degenerative disease with a high variability among patients, and a healthy volunteer

Summary

Introduction

Robotics exoskeletons are a technology in continuous development mainly in the medical and military fields. Considering the medical domain, both upper and lower limb exoskeletons obey two paradigms: rehabilitation and augmentation. There is a clear conceptual difference between them. The rehabilitation exoskeletons are designed to follow a specific therapy/treatment. It is assumed that patients are going to enhance their mobility in the rehabilitation therapy. This robot must be useful for a wide range of patients considering weight, height, gender, and disease, among others. Mechanical parameters, on-board sensors, and the software and hardware architecture are expected to be flexible enough in order to adapt the device to each particular patient

Results

Discussion

Conclusion