KR101937012B1 - Exoskeleton system for assisting lower limb joints - Google Patents

Abstract

The exoskeleton system for supporting the lower limb of a human body according to the present invention comprises: a first sub-unit for supporting a hip joint of a human body by supporting a hip joint of a human body and assisting movement of the hip joint of the human body by driving the 5-degree of freedom; A third auxiliary unit for supporting the movement of the ankle joint region by supporting the ankle joint region of the human body by driving the two degrees of freedom, And a drive unit detachably connected to at least one of the units to provide a driving force. According to this configuration, it is possible to provide an exoskeleton system for ankle joint assistance that is human-friendly and highly stable since the rotational axis can be followed during the gait of the human body.

Description

EXOKELETON SYSTEM FOR ASSISTING LOWER LIMB JOINTS

More particularly, the present invention relates to an exoskeletal system for supporting the lower limbs, and more particularly, to a hip joint and a knee joint by selectively driving a human body required for a gait by using an additional driving device during walking of the human body, The present invention relates to an exoskeleton system for supporting the lower limb of a human body with improved driving stability by following the rotation axis of the ankle joint.

Due to factors such as an increase in the elderly population, the research and development of physical aids are continuously increasing. As an example of such a physical support device, the exoskeleton robot is a kind of wearable robot which can support or strengthen the weak muscle strength due to the damage of the exercise organ by attaching the robot arm or leg to the person.

Human-Robot Interaction (HRI) technology is becoming more important because of the emergence of exoskeleton robots. As exoskeleton robots always operate in combination with the wearer, reducing the sense of physical impression felt by the wearer is an important goal. Although it can be achieved by the use of quick control and the use of sensitive sensors, if the hardware does not have a movement similar to the human joint structure, the mismatch of the wearer and the robot movement necessarily occurs. Such displacement caused between the wearer and the robot due to the inconsistency of the rotating shafts may result in lowering of wearing comfort, skin damage due to continuous friction, lowering of drive torque transmission efficiency, and the like.

Accordingly, researches on a technique for increasing the wearability of a user wearing a wearable robot have been made steadily in recent years. Especially, in the previous study, it is difficult to match the rotation axis to the human hip which can be considered as ball - socket structure, and it has complicated structure. Therefore, in recent years, studies have been made to provide a mechanical structure applicable to various sizes in order to make the yaw axes of the robot and the wearer coincide with each other. Respectively.

During walking, the human hip, knee joint, and ankle joints can be thought of as having three degrees of freedom structure, respectively. At this time, in the case of the forward walking motion, motion on the sagittal plane has the greatest influence. Previous work has shown that aiding the movement of the hip and knee joints on the sagittal plane helps to support normal gait movements. Therefore, in this patent, the system is configured to assist the movement on the sagittal plane of the hip joint and the knee joint, so that it can be assisted in walking. However, unlike existing studies, research is underway to improve the overall efficiency of the system by selectively enabling joints that require assistance.

Korean Patent Application No. 2008-0103457 Japanese Patent Application No. 2012-539132 Japanese Patent Application No. 2015-042287

The present invention is to provide a human-friendly exoskeleton system for supporting the lower limb of the wearer by matching the joint axis of the wearable robot with the rotation axis of the human joint.

It is another object of the present invention to provide an exoskeleton system for supporting the lower limbs, which is advantageous in securing diversity of use by selectively providing a driving force to a joint requiring assistance in accordance with a wearer.

In order to accomplish the above object, the present invention provides an exoskeleton system for supporting the lower limb of a human body, comprising: a first sub-unit for supporting a hip joint of a human body and assisting movement of a hip joint portion of a human body by driving five degrees of freedom; A second auxiliary unit for supporting the joint region and assisting the movement of the knee joint region by a one degree of freedom drive; a second auxiliary unit for supporting the ankle joint region of the human body to assist movement of the ankle joint region by two- And a drive unit detachably connected to at least one of the first to third sub-units to provide a driving force.

According to one aspect of the present invention, the first sub-unit includes a hip joint support member which is capable of being brought into close contact with a hip joint portion of the human body including a waist support member for supporting the waist of the human body and a back support member for supporting the back of the human body, A first hip joint driving part capable of being driven in a first degree of freedom by rotation in a roll direction along the thigh; and a second hip joint driving part connected to the waist supporting member so as to be brought into close contact with the thigh of the human body, And a second hinge drive capable of driving.

According to one aspect of the present invention, the first hip joint drive unit includes a first degree of freedom drive member and a second degree of freedom drive member, which are rotatably connected in the roll direction along the back support member, And may include a first degree of freedom elastic body which is elastically pressed against the back support member.

According to one aspect of the present invention, the second hip joint drive unit includes a second degree of freedom drive member connected to the back support member and rotatably connected in the yaw direction, A third degree of freedom driving member capable of being slidable in the direction of the roll axis so as to be capable of being driven by the third degree of freedom drive, and the second degree of freedom driving member supported by the third degree of freedom driving member, A fourth degree of freedom driving member capable of sliding in a pitch axis direction so as to be able to hold a rotation axis with respect to the yaw axis of the thigh during sliding and rotating movement in the yaw direction, A second degree-of-freedom driving member, and a second degree-of-freedom driving member, the second degree-of-freedom driving member being rotatably connected to the second degree- And may include a fifth degree of freedom drive member.

According to one aspect of the present invention, the second sub-unit includes a thigh supporting portion for supporting the thigh of the human body, a shank supporting portion for supporting the shank of the human body, and a shank supporting portion for rotatably connecting the thigh supporting portion and the shank supporting portion in a pitch direction , And a sixth degree of freedom driving member capable of driving the sixth degree of freedom.

According to one aspect, the thigh support comprises a thigh support for supporting the thigh, a first adjustment member connecting between the thigh support and the first sub-unit, for supporting the thigh support movably in the longitudinal direction, And a second adjustable member connecting the support and the sixth degree of freedom drive member and adjustable in the longitudinal direction.

According to one aspect of the present invention, the third sub-unit includes: a support portion for supporting an ankle of the human body; a load supporting portion extending from the second sub-unit and supporting sag due to self weight applied to the support portion; And may include a length adjustable connection portion interconnecting between the load supporting portions.

According to one aspect of the present invention, the receiving portion includes a first pedestal for supporting the sole of the human body, a second pedestal extending from the first pedestal so as to be in close contact with the heel of the human body in the vertical upward direction, And a seventh degree-of-freedom driving member rotatable in a roll direction with respect to the connecting portion and capable of driving the seventh degree of freedom.

According to one aspect, the load supporting portion may include a load supporting rod extending in the longitudinal direction with the second sub-unit, and an elastic support provided inside the load supporting rod to elastically support the load supporting rod to absorb the self weight.

According to one aspect of the present invention, the connecting portion may include a first connecting rod rotatably connected to the receiving portion in a roll direction so as to be able to be driven in a seventh degree of freedom, and a second connecting rod rotatably connected to the load supporting portion in a pitch direction A second connecting rod capable of driving the eighth degree of freedom, and a third connecting rod that is adjustably connected between the first and second connecting rods.

According to one aspect of the present invention, the drive unit may have a different torque magnitude and be connectable to at least one of the first to third sub-units.

According to one aspect, the driving unit may be detachably connectable to the first and second auxiliary units.

The exoskeleton system for supporting the human body according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention supports the hip joint of the human body and is driven in the roll and pitch axis direction together with rotation in the yaw, roll and pitch directions A second auxiliary unit for supporting the knee joint part of the human body and assisting the movement of the knee joint part by the pitch direction rotation drive, And a third auxiliary unit for supporting the ankle joint part of the human body and assisting the movement of the ankle joint part by the pitch and roll rotation driving.

According to one aspect of the present invention, the first sub-unit includes: a hip joint support part for supporting a hip joint part of the human body; a first hip joint drive part capable of being driven in a first degree of freedom by the roll direction rotation with respect to the hip joint support part; And a second hip joint driving part connected to the hapticsupport part so as to be closely contacted and capable of driving the first to fourth degrees of freedom in conjunction with the movement of the thigh.

According to one aspect of the present invention, the first hinge drive part includes a first degree-of-freedom drive member which is rotatably connected to the hip joint support part in the roll direction, and a second degree- And a first degree-of-freedom elastic body that elastically pressurizes the first degree-of-freedom elastic body.

According to one aspect of the present invention, the second hinge drive part includes a second degree of freedom drive member connected to the hip joint support part so as to be rotatable in the yaw direction and capable of being driven by the second degree of freedom, A third degree of freedom driving member which is slidably supported in an axial direction and is capable of being driven by the third degree of freedom, and the second degree of freedom driving member supported by the third degree of freedom driving member, The fourth degree of freedom driving member and the second degree of freedom driving member that are slidably supported in the pitch axis direction so as to hold the rotation axis with respect to the yaw axis of the thigh during rotation of the thigh, And the second degree-of-freedom driving member, the second degree-of-freedom driving member being rotatably connected to the second degree-of-freedom driving member in the pitch direction, And possibly a fifth degree of freedom drive member.

According to one aspect of the present invention, the second sub-unit includes a thigh support portion for supporting a thigh of the human body, a shank support portion for supporting a shank of the human body, and a thigh support portion for rotatably connecting the thigh support portion and the shank support portion in the pitch direction, And a sixth degree of freedom driving member capable of driving six degrees of freedom, wherein the thigh support portion and the shank support portion are each adjustable in height.

According to one aspect, the third sub-unit includes a first pedestal for supporting the sole of the human body, a second pedestal extending from the first pedestal so as to be in close contact with the heel of the human body in the vertical upward direction, A seventh degree of freedom driving member which is adjustable in the longitudinal direction and is rotatable in the roll direction so as to be able to be driven in a seventh degree of freedom and which supports the ankle joint part of the human body rotatably in the roll direction, A load supporting base extending in the longitudinal direction with respect to the second sub-unit, and an elastic supporting base provided inside the load supporting base to elastically support the load supporting base to absorb the self weight, wherein deflection due to the weight applied to the receiving base And a third degree of freedom drive member rotatably connected to the seventh degree of freedom drive member in the roll direction A second connecting rod rotatably connected to the load support in the pitch direction and capable of being driven in an eighth degree of freedom, and a second connecting rod rotatably connected to the first and second connecting rods so as to be adjustable in length, And a connecting portion including three connecting rods for mutually connecting the receiving portion and the load supporting portion in a length-adjustable manner.

According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a driving unit for a vehicle, wherein the driving unit is detachably connected to at least one of the first to third auxiliary units to provide a driving force, And a plurality of units can be connected to at least one of the units.

According to the present invention having the above-described configuration, first, by following the rotation axis of the lower limb during the gait of the wearer, movement similar to the motion of the human joint is possible, thereby minimizing the relative displacement occurring between the human body and the exoskeletal system, It is possible to improve Mars. Further, the torque transmitted from the drive unit can be more efficiently provided to the wearer's joints.

Secondly, it is possible to control the driving force to be connected and provided according to the condition of the wearer, which is advantageous for ensuring diversity of use.

Third, it is possible to cope with various conditions of the condition of the wearer, thereby contributing to improvement of the reliability of the wearer.

1 is a perspective view schematically showing a state in which an exoskeletal system for supporting the lower limbs according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention is worn.
FIG. 2 is a perspective view schematically showing an exoskeletal system for ankle joint assistance according to an embodiment shown in FIG. 1. FIG.
3 is a perspective view schematically showing the first auxiliary unit shown in FIG.
FIG. 4 is a perspective view schematically showing a second hinge drive part shown in FIG. 3; FIG.
FIG. 5 is a plan view schematically showing an operation in which the second haptics driving part shown in FIG. 4 is driven in conjunction with the movement of the thigh.
FIG. 6 is a perspective view schematically showing the second sub-unit shown in FIG. 2. FIG.
FIG. 7 is a perspective view schematically showing the third sub-unit shown in FIG. 2. FIG. And,
FIG. 8 is a perspective view schematically showing a state in which the driving unit shown in FIG. 2 is connected to the first and second auxiliary units.

Hereinafter, a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, the spirit of the present invention is not limited to such embodiments, and the spirit of the present invention may be proposed differently by adding, modifying and deleting constituent elements constituting the embodiment, .

1 and 2, an exoskeletal system 1 for ankle joint according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention includes a first sub-unit 10, a second sub-unit 20, a third sub-unit 30 And a drive unit (40).

1 is a perspective view schematically showing a state in which the exoskeletal system 1 for supporting the lower limbs of the present invention is worn on the human body B. Fig. 2 is a cross- 1). ≪ / RTI >

For reference, the exoskeletal system 1 for supporting the lower limbs of the present invention is shown and exemplified as including an exoskeletal robot, which is a physical assistance means. More specifically, the exoskeleton assistant exoskeleton system 1 can be applied to an exoskeletal robot applicable to the lower limbs of the human body including the hip joint region H, the knee joint region K, and the ankle joint region A. To assist the wearer ' s walking.

The first auxiliary unit 10 assists the human body B, that is, the hip region H of the wearer to assist the five-degree-of-freedom driving, so as to follow the center of rotation during the walking of the hip joint region H. Here, the five-degree-of-freedom drive of the first sub-unit 10 includes roll and pitch axial drive together with Yaw, Roll and Pitch direction rotations. 3, the first sub-unit 10 includes a hip joint support portion 11, a first hip joint drive portion 12, and a second hip joint drive portion 13. As shown in FIG.

The hip joint supporting portion 11 supports the hip joint portion H of the human body B. More specifically, the hip joint support portion 11 includes a waist support member 111 for supporting the waist of the human body B and a back support member 112 for supporting the back of the human body, Respectively.

The waist support member 111 has a shape bent at a predetermined angle so that the waist support member 111 can be closely contacted with the curved waist in the transverse direction. More preferably, the waist support member 111 is made of a soft material such as cotton or cloth, To be fixed to the human body (B). That is, the waist supporting member 111 is a kind of fastening means that can be fastened to the waist of the human body B.

The back support member 112 has a slot adjustable in a vertical direction with respect to the waist support member 111. The back support member 112 is adjustable in length according to the pelvis and waist length of the human body B, And has a plate shape that can be supported.

The first hinge part driving part 12 can be driven in one degree of freedom by rotating in the roll direction along the back support part 112. The first hinge drive part 12 includes a first degree of freedom drive member 121 and a first degree of freedom elastic body 122.

The first degree of freedom drive member 121 is rotatably connected to the back support member 112 in the roll direction so that the first degree of freedom drive is possible. The first degree-of-freedom driving member 121 is a circular rotating body, and is rotatable about an axis of the backing member 112. The first degree of freedom drive member 121 is connected to the back support member 112. A horizontal slot is provided at the connection between the first degree of freedom drive member 121 and the back support member 112 so that the distance between both hip joint roll axes It is good to be able to control.

The first degree-of-freedom elastomer 122 elastically presses the first degree-of-freedom driving member 121 against the backing member 112. The first degree of freedom elastic body 122 may include any one of various elastic means such as a coil spring. When the rotation of the hip joint in the roll axis direction occurs, the first degree-of-freedom elastic body 122 generates a restoring force to return to the normal posture, and plays a role of assisting the user in returning to a stable posture with the restoring force .

The second hinge drive part 13 is connected to both ends of the waist support member 111 so as to be brought into close contact with the thigh T of the human body B to assist the 4-degree of freedom drive. As shown in Figs. 3 and 4, the second hinge drive unit 13 includes a second DOF drive member 131, a third DOF drive member 132, a fourth DOF drive member 133, And a 5-degree-of-freedom driving member 134. The second hinge drive part 13 is connected to a pair of coupling vanes 135 extending from both ends of the back support part 112 so as to be paired with respect to the back support part 112 to move the thigh T .

The second degree-of-freedom driving member 131 is connected to the back support member 112 and connected to be rotatable in the yaw direction in conjunction with the movement of the thigh T of the human body, so that the second degree of freedom driving is also driven. Here, the second degree of freedom drive member 131 has a columnar shape that is rotated in the yaw direction, which is provided in parallel to the yaw axis direction.

The third degree of freedom driving member 132 is configured to support the second degree of freedom driving member 131 so as to be slidable in the roll axis direction in association with the movement of the second degree of freedom driving member 131, Freedom is also driven. The third degree of freedom driving member 132 is provided as a kind of rail and is slid in the third degree of freedom driving state, that is, in the roll axis direction, while being connected to the second degree of freedom driving member 131.

The fourth degree of freedom driving member 133 is configured such that when the second degree of freedom driving member 131 supported by the third degree of freedom driving member 132 slides in the roll axis direction and rotates in the yaw direction, The fourth degree of freedom is also driven by being slidably supported in the pitch axis direction so as to hold the rotation axis. Therefore, the fourth degree of freedom driving member 133 can bring the second degree of freedom driving member 131 into close contact with the thigh side. As shown in FIG. 5, the fourth degree of freedom driving member 133 has a sliding groove 136 into which the second degree of freedom driving member 131 is inserted and can slide in the pitch axis direction.

The fifth degree of freedom drive member 134 is connected between the second degree of freedom drive member 131 and the second auxiliary unit 20 so as to be rotatable in the pitch direction with respect to the second degree of freedom drive member 131, So that the fifth degree of freedom is also driven. The fifth degree of freedom drive member 134 is rotated in the pitch direction about the fifth free sideways 137. The driving of the second haptics driving unit 13 having such a configuration will be described with reference to Fig. 5 (a), the second degree-of-freedom driving member 131 tightly attached to the thigh T of the human body B interlocks with the movement of the thigh T as shown in FIG. 5 (b) Direction. At this time, the second degree-of-freedom driving member 131 is slid in the roll axis direction along the third degree-of-freedom driving member 132, and is slid in the pitch axis direction as shown in FIG. 5 (c). The second degree of freedom driving member 131 is driven while following the movement of the center of rotation of the thigh T in a state in which the second degree of freedom driving member 131 always adheres to the thigh T.

That is, a two-degree-of-freedom drive that slides in the roll and pitch axes is added in the three-degree-of-freedom drive that is rotated in the conventional yaw, roll and pitch directions by the third and fourth DOF drive members 132 and 133 The second degree of freedom drive member 131 can follow the rotation axis of the thigh T on the transverse plane located inside the human body B. [ Further, even if the turning radius is changed according to the thickness of the thigh T of the human body B, it is possible to stably support the walking according to the follow-up of the center of rotation of the thigh T.

The second sub-unit 20 supports the knee joint K of the human body B to assist the movement of the knee joint K by one degree of freedom drive. Here, since the displacement of the center of rotation of the knee joint part K is not large, it is possible to drive a fixed center rotation having a fixed center.

This second sub-unit 20 includes a thigh support 21, a shank support 22 and a sixth degree of freedom drive member 23, as shown in Fig.

The thigh support part 21 supports the thigh T of the human body B. The thigh support 21 includes a thigh support 211 for supporting the thigh T, a first adjustment member 212 for connecting the thigh support 211 and the first aiding unit 10, And a second adjusting member 213 for connecting the sixth degree of freedom driving member 23 with the second degree of freedom driving member 23.

The thigh support base 211 is a fastening means for tightly contacting the thigh T and is made of a soft material such as cotton or cloth such as a waist support member 111 and is fastened to the human body B by a fixing means such as a belt Fixable. The first adjusting member 212 includes a kind of rail connected to the fifth degree of freedom driving member 134 of the first auxiliary unit 10. The thigh support base 211 is slidable in the longitudinal direction along the first adjustment member 212 so that the height of the thigh support base 211 is appropriately adjusted to the thigh of the human body B. The second adjustable member 213 is adjustable in the longitudinal direction along the first adjustable member 212 provided with the thigh support 211 so that the second adjustable member 213 is adjustable along the length of the thigh of the body B, 20).

The shank support part (22) supports the shank (S) of the human body (B). The shank support portion 22 also includes a shank support 221 for supporting the shank S, a third adjustment member 222 for connecting the shank support member 221 to the sixth degree of freedom drive member 23, And a fourth adjusting member 223 connecting between the second auxiliary unit 221 and the third auxiliary unit 30.

The shin support 221 is a kind of fastening means closely attached to the shank S and is made of a soft material such as cotton or cloth in the same manner as the above-described thigh support stand 211 and is fastened to the human body B by a fixing means such as a belt Fixable. The third adjustment member 222 extends from the sixth degree of freedom drive member 23 and has a rail shape such that the shank support 221 is movable along the third adjustment member 222. The fourth adjusting member 223 is adjustable in the longitudinal direction along the third adjusting member 222 that supports the shank support 221. With this configuration, the height of the shank support 221 can be adjusted by the third and fourth adjustment members 222, 223.

The sixth degree of freedom drive member 23 rotatably connects the thigh support portion 21 and the shank support portion 22 in the pitch direction to drive the sixth degree of freedom drive. That is, the sixth degree of freedom drive member 23 rotatably connects the thigh support portion 21 and the shank support portion 22 so as to correspond to one degree of freedom drive between the thigh T and the shank S will be. The sixth degree of freedom driving member 23 is provided between the second adjusting member 213 and the third adjusting member 222.

The third sub-unit 30 supports the ankle joint region A of the human body B and assists the movement of the ankle joint region A by driving the two degrees of freedom. Here, since the motion of the ankle joint region (A) hardly occurs on the transverse plane and the motion of the hip joint region (H) on the horizontal plane has a greater influence, the degree of freedom on the horizontal plane is excluded, Explain as possible.

This third sub-unit 30 includes a receiving portion 31, a load supporting portion 32 and a connecting portion 33 as shown in Fig.

The support portion 31 supports the ankle joint region A of the human body B. To this end, the receiving portion 31 includes a first pedestal 311 for supporting the sole of the human body B, a second pedestal 312 for tightly contacting the heel of the human body B, Degree-of-freedom driving member 313.

Specifically, the first pedestal 311 is provided to have a predetermined area so that the soles thereof can be placed thereon, and the second pedestal 312 is provided to extend vertically upward from the first pedestal 311 and is in close contact with the heel . The seventh-degree of freedom driving member 313 extends in a longitudinal direction adjustable from the second pedestal 312 and is rotatable in the roll direction with respect to the connecting portion 33. That is, the seventh-degree of freedom driving member 313 has a shape elongated in the longitudinal direction, one end is connected to the second pedestal 312, and the other end is rotatable in the roll direction with respect to the connecting portion 33, The seventh degree of freedom is drivable.

The load supporting portion 32 extends from the second sub-unit 20 and supports sag due to its own weight applied to the receiving portion 31. [ The load supporting portion 32 includes a load supporting member 321 and an elastic supporting member 322.

The load support base 321 is provided to extend in the longitudinal direction with respect to the second sub-unit 20. More specifically, the load support member 321 is connected to the fourth adjustment member 223 so as to extend vertically downward from the shank support portion 22 of the second sub-unit 20. The load support base 321 is a kind of frame, and the elastic support base 322 is embedded therein. The elastic support table 322 elastically supports the load support table 321 to absorb its own weight.

The connecting portion 33 interconnects the receiving portion 31 and the load supporting portion 32 and is adjustable in length. The connecting portion 33 includes first to third connecting portions 331, 332, and 333.

The first linkage 331 is rotatably connected in the roll direction for the seventh-degree of freedom drive from the receiving portion 31. [ Here, the first linkage 331 is a frame connected horizontally with respect to the seventh degree-of-freedom drive member 313 of the receiving unit 31.

The second linking part 332 is rotatably connected to the load supporting part 32 in the pitch direction so as to be able to drive the eighth degree of freedom. The second linkage 332 is a frame connected in the horizontal direction intersecting the load support 321 of the load support portion 32.

The third linking part 333 is connected to the first and second linking parts 331 and 332 so as to be adjustable in length. The third link 333 is a frame that is folded in a "? &Quot; shape and connects the first and second linkages 331 and 332. The positions of the first and second linking portions 331 and 332 are adjusted so that the distance between the receiving portion 31 and the load supporting portion 32 is adjusted with respect to the third connecting rod 333, The size can be adjusted corresponding to the size of the human body (B).

The drive unit 40 is detachably connected to at least one of the first to third sub-units 10, 20, and 30, and adds a torque required for operation of the attached joint part. Here, the torque of the drive unit 40 rotates the applied joint in the direction required by the wearer. That is, even if the wearer's muscle strength is insufficient, the torque is added by the driving force of the drive unit 40 to enable the same walking motion as that of a normal person.

In this embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 8A and 8B, the driving unit 40 is detachably connected to the first and second sub-units 10 and 20 .

More specifically, as shown in Fig. 8 (a), the drive unit 40 applies torque to the second hip joint drive unit 13 of the first sub-unit 10 supporting the hip joint region H of the human body B Lt; / RTI > 8 (b), the drive unit 40 is attached to the sixth degree of freedom drive member 23 of the second sub-unit 20 that assists in supporting the knee joint K of the human body B It is connectable to add a driving force torque.

Here, the drive unit 40 is provided with a plurality of motors 41 for generating driving force and a driver 42 for driving force control, respectively. At this time, the plurality of drive units 40 can generate torques of different sizes.

As a result, as in the case where the drive unit 40 capable of generating a relatively large torque is connected to a joint requiring a relatively large auxiliary driving force, or the drive unit 40 is removed for a joint part in which a driving force assist is not required, The driving unit 40 can be easily replaced and applied according to the conditions, so that unnecessary weight of the system can be reduced and optimum configuration can be achieved according to the wearer.

Even if all the drive units 40 are removed from the first to third sub-units 10, 20 and 30, the first to third sub-units 10, 20, It can be driven by walking power.

Although not shown in detail, the exoskeleton system 1 for supporting the lower limb according to one embodiment of the present invention includes an encoder E capable of measuring a rotation angle of a sagittal plane and a posture estimation A system (Attitude Heading Reference System, AHRS) (not shown), a sensor (not shown) attached to a fastening means to be fastened to the thigh and the shank to measure the contact force with the wearer, It can also be used as a device.

Although the present invention has been described with reference to the preferred embodiments thereof, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made in the present invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the following claims. It can be understood that

1: Exoskeleton system for lower limb assist system 10: First auxiliary unit
11: hip joint supporting part 12: first hip joint driving part
13: second hip joint driving part 20: second auxiliary unit
21: thigh support 22: shank support
23: sixth degree of freedom drive member 30: third auxiliary unit
31: Support part 32: Load supporting part
33: connection part 40: drive unit
B: Human body H: Hip joint area
K: knee joint region A: ankle joint region

Claims (20)

A first auxiliary unit for supporting the hip region of the human body and assisting the movement of the hip region of the human body by the 5 degrees of freedom drive;
A second auxiliary unit for supporting the knee joint part of the human body and assisting movement of the knee joint part by one degree of freedom drive;
A third auxiliary unit for supporting the ankle joint part of the human body and assisting the movement of the ankle joint part by two degrees of freedom drive; And
A drive unit detachably connected to at least one of the first to third sub-units to provide a driving force;
≪ / RTI >
Wherein the first sub-
A hips supporting member for supporting the back of the human body and a supporting member for supporting the back of the human body and being able to be brought into close contact with the hip of the human body;
A first hip joint driving part capable of being driven in a first degree of freedom by a roll direction rotation along the back support; And
A second hip joint driving part connected to the waist supporting member so as to be in close contact with the thigh of the human body and capable of driving first to fourth degrees of freedom in conjunction with movement of the thigh;
Lt; / RTI >
Wherein the first hinge part comprises:
A first degree-of-freedom driving member rotatably connected to the backing member in a roll direction, the first degree of freedom driving member being rotatable in a roll direction; And
A first degree of freedom elastic member for elastically pressing the first degree of freedom drive member against the back support member;
Lt; / RTI >
And the second hippen-
A second degree of freedom drive member connected to the back support member and rotatably connected in the yaw direction, the second degree of freedom drive member being capable of being driven by the second degree of freedom;
A third degree-of-freedom driving member slidably supporting the second degree of freedom driving member in a direction of a roll axis to enable the third degree of freedom driving;
The second degree of freedom driving member supported by the third degree of freedom driving member is provided with a pitch so as to maintain a rotation axis with respect to the yaw axis of the thigh during sliding in the roll axis direction and rotational movement in the yaw direction, A fourth degree-of-freedom driving member which is slidably supported in the axial direction and is capable of driving the fourth degree of freedom; And
A fifth degree-of-freedom driving member connected between the second degree-of-freedom driving member and the second auxiliary unit, the fifth degree-of-freedom driving member being rotatably connected to the second degree of freedom driving member in a pitch direction;
An exoskeleton system for supporting the lower extremities.
delete delete delete The method according to claim 1,
The second sub-
A thigh support for supporting the thigh of the human body;
A shank support part for supporting a shank of the human body; And
A sixth degree of freedom driving member rotatably connecting the thigh support part and the shank support part in a pitch direction so as to be able to drive the sixth degree of freedom drive;
An exoskeleton system for supporting the lower extremities.
6. The method of claim 5,
The thigh-
A thigh support for supporting the thigh;
A first adjusting member connecting between the thigh support and the first sub-unit and movably supporting the thigh support in the longitudinal direction; And
A second adjustable member connecting the thigh support and the sixth degree of freedom drive member and adjustable in the longitudinal direction;
An exoskeleton system for supporting the lower extremities.
6. The method of claim 5,
The shank support,
A shank support for supporting the shank;
A third adjusting member connecting between the sixth degree of freedom driving member and the shank support and supporting the shank support in a longitudinal direction; And
A fourth adjustment member connecting between the shank support and the third sub-unit and adjustable in the longitudinal direction;
An exoskeleton system for supporting the lower extremities.
The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the third sub-
A pedestal supporting an ankle joint portion of the human body;
A load supporting portion extending from the second sub-unit and supporting sag due to self weight applied to the receiving portion; And
A connecting portion interconnecting the receiving portion and the load supporting portion, the connecting portion being adjustable in length;
An exoskeleton system for supporting the lower extremities.
9. The method of claim 8,
[0030]
A first pedestal supporting the sole of the human body;
A second pedestal extending vertically upward from the first pedestal so as to be in close contact with the heel of the human body; And
A seventh degree-of-freedom driving member that is adjustably extendable in the longitudinal direction from the second pedestal, is rotatable in a roll direction with respect to the connecting portion, and is capable of being driven by a seventh degree of freedom;
An exoskeleton system for supporting the lower extremities.
9. The method of claim 8,
The load-
A load support extending in the longitudinal direction with the second sub-unit; And
An elastic support provided inside the load support for elastically supporting the load support to absorb the self weight;
An exoskeleton system for supporting the lower extremities.
9. The method of claim 8,
The connecting portion
A first connecting rod rotatably connected to the receiving portion in a roll direction and capable of being driven in a seventh degree of freedom;
A second connecting rod rotatably connected to the load supporting portion in a pitch direction and capable of being driven in an eighth degree of freedom; And
A third connecting rod that is adjustably connected between the first and second connecting rods;
An exoskeleton system for supporting the lower extremities.
The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the drive unit has a different torque magnitude and is connectable to at least one of the first to third sub-units.
13. The method of claim 12,
Wherein the drive unit is detachably connectable to the first and second sub-units.
A first assistant that supports the hip of the human body and is driven in the roll and pitch axis direction together with the yaw, roll and pitch rotations to assist in tracking the center of rotation during the walking of the hip joint unit;
A second sub-unit supporting the knee joint part of the human body and assisting movement of the knee joint part by the pitch direction rotational drive; And
A third auxiliary unit for supporting the ankle joint part of the human body and assisting the movement of the ankle joint part by the pitch and roll rotation driving;
≪ / RTI >
Wherein the first sub-
A hip joint supporting part for supporting the hip joint of the human body;
A first hip joint driving part capable of being driven in a first degree of freedom by the roll direction rotation with respect to the hip joint supporting part; And
A second hip joint driving part connected to the hip joint supporting part so as to be brought into close contact with the thigh of the human body and capable of driving first to fourth degrees of freedom in conjunction with movement of the thigh;
Lt; / RTI >
Wherein the first hinge part comprises:
A first degree-of-freedom driving member that is rotatably connected to the hip joint support portion in the roll direction; And
A first degree of freedom elastic member for elastically pressing the first degree of freedom drive member against the hip joint support portion;
Lt; / RTI >
And the second hippen-
A second degree-of-freedom driving member connected to the hip joint support portion so as to be rotatable in the yaw direction and capable of being driven by the second degree of freedom;
A third degree-of-freedom driving member capable of slidably supporting the second degree of freedom driving member in the roll axis direction and driving the third degree of freedom;
Wherein the second degree of freedom driving member supported by the third degree of freedom driving member is disposed in the pitch axis direction so as to maintain the rotation axis with respect to the yaw axis of the thigh during sliding in the roll axis direction and rotational movement in the yaw direction, So as to be slidable
A fourth degree of freedom drive member capable of being driven by the fourth degree of freedom drive; And
A fifth degree of freedom driving member that interconnects the second degree of freedom driving member and the second auxiliary unit and is rotatably connected to the second degree of freedom driving member in the pitch direction and is capable of being driven by a fifth degree of freedom;
An exoskeleton system for supporting the lower extremities.
delete delete delete 15. The method of claim 14,
The second sub-
A thigh support for supporting the thigh of the human body;
A shank support part for supporting a shank of the human body; And
A sixth degree of freedom driving member rotatably connecting the thigh support part and the shank support part in the pitch direction and being capable of being driven by a sixth degree of freedom drive;
/ RTI >
Wherein the thigh support portion and the shin support portion are each adjustable in height.
15. The method of claim 14,
Wherein the third sub-
A second pedestal extending vertically upward from the first pedestal so as to be in close contact with the heel of the human body; and a second pedestal extending from the second pedestal so as to be adjustable in the longitudinal direction, And a seventh degree-of-freedom driving member rotatable by a seventh degree of freedom, the supporting portion supporting the ankle joint portion of the human body rotatably in the roll direction;
A load supporting base extending in the longitudinal direction with the second sub-unit, and an elastic support provided inside the load supporting base to elastically support the load supporting base to absorb a self weight applied to the receiving base, A load supporting portion for supporting sag due to its own weight; And
A first connecting rod rotatably connected to the seventh degree-of-freedom driving member of the receiving portion in a roll direction so as to be able to be driven in a seventh degree of freedom, a second connecting rod rotatably connected to the load- A second connecting rod, and a third connecting rod that is adjustably connected between the first connecting rod and the second connecting rod, the connecting portion connecting the receiving portion and the load supporting portion in a length-adjustable manner;
An exoskeleton system for supporting the lower extremities.
15. The method of claim 14,
A drive unit detachably connected to at least one of the first to third sub-units to provide a driving force;
/ RTI >
Wherein the driving unit is provided with a plurality of driving units each having a different torque magnitude and capable of being connected to at least one of the first to third auxiliary units.

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