A study of pneumatic muscle technology for possible assistance in mobility

Pneumatic muscles, in an actuation paradigm, provide a new form of technology which can be used to facilitate and provide strength or mobility assistance. This paper concentrates on how such a system as a balloon which expands within an enclosed sheath surface highly compliant in one direction (radial) and highly noncompliant in the orthogonal direction (axial) can be utilized to provide rehabilitation assistance. The actuator described herein has the unique advantages of having the largest ratio of power/weight and power/volume as compared to hydraulic or electric motor analogs which would perform this function. Studies on the nonlinearities of the composite system under consideration are conducted. As a totally integrated assemblage, the approach here is to treat the actuator like any rigid material substance and to determine both the equivalent Young's modulus and Poisson's ratio.