Semi-Active Assistive Exoskeleton System for Elbow Joint

Assistive wearable exoskeleton can help to restore respective muscle functions of people with disabilities and provide support to workers within strenuous activities. The design of a practical exoskeleton should be user-friendly, compact, lightweight without any obtrusive effect on the user, which justifies the execution of optimisation steps for the design of the links and configuration of the system. Most exoskeletons struggle to accommodate a slight variation in functionality from their original design. This work addresses the design and development of a light-weight semi-active elbow exoskeleton. The main objectives consist of the development of a semi-active actuation mechanism with an adaptive exoskeleton frame and harness to accommodate varying user anthropometrics. The effectiveness of the proposed exoskeleton design has been evaluated through simulation. Furthermore, the system has been implemented in order to determine the physical feasibility and practicality through rapid fabrication prototyping. The outcomes of the study show that the exoskeleton can adjust to varying anthropometrics and assist elbow flexion, reducing stress and fatigue on the human elbow joint and muscles induced by gravity during flexion.