Development and Testing of Passive Walking Assistive Exoskeleton with Upward Force Assist

Abstract

An aging population and rising prevalence in obesity, arthritis and diabetes are resulting in a great number of elders that are suffering from mobility challenges. Walking assist exoskeletons have the potential to help preserve mobility in elders. The most common type of exoskeleton relies on heavily, complex and expensive components to help their user walk effortlessly. Recent research on walking assist exoskeletons has shifted towards the creation of an entirely mechanical system called passive walking assist exoskeleton. This research aims to design, model and test a passive walking assist exoskeleton that reduces the felt weight of the user during gait. The assist is achieved by the action of a seat mechanism which constantly produces an upward force on the pelvis of the user. This thesis details the entire composition and assembly of such device. The proposed device was modelled in order to predict the assistance provided by the seat mechanism when standing and walking with the device. A human-sized prototype was built and tested in order to mechanically validate the proposed design. The test results validated the proposed seat mechanism which produces the desired upward force, but the use of the exoskeleton in its current state hindered the natural gait pattern of the user.