Re-design of a component of a lower-limb robotic exoskeleton for integrating sensing capacity and enhancing multi-material direct additive manufacturing

Abstract

The quest for the materialisation of advanced products is expanding the need for intelligent components and devices. One of the fields of application for such products is the medical technology industry, in which many value-added products could benefit from extending its embedded functionalities. To this regard, the obtention of such products via Additive Manufacturing Technologies would be very beneficial, providing that the design requirements could be met in a seamless and direct manner. In this context, the present article develops and analyses three design iterations of a component of a lower-limb robotic exoskeleton for integrating sensing capacity on it via multi-material direct additive manufacturing. In subsequent steps, the component geometry is optimised for additive direct manufacturing, and different functionalities are incorporated (padding for comfort and circuitry for sensing). For each iteration, the design is validated by means of finite element analysis and the main manufacturing parameters are assessed to compare the different times and costs yield. The third redesign incorporates three different materials (ABS, TPU and PE+Cu), but still it is possible to be 3D printed with a two extruder-head FDM 3D printer. The design and manufacturing results obtained could be implemented in further biomedical products or other parts requiring advanced functionalities.