Development of an Improved Rotational Orthosis for Walking With Arm Swing and Active Ankle Control

Based on interlimb neural coupling, gait robotic systems should produce walking-like movement in both upper and lower limbs for effective walking restoration. Two orthoses were previously designed in our lab to provide passive walking with arm swing. However, an active system for walking with arm swing is desirable to serve as a testbed for investigation of interlimb neural coupling in response to voluntary input. Given the important function of the ankle joint during normal walking, this work aimed to develop an improved rotational orthosis for walking with arm swing, which is called ROWAS II, and especially to develop and evaluate the algorithms for active ankle control. After description of the mechanical structure and control schemes of the overall ROWAS II system, the closed-loop position control and adjustable admittance control algorithms were firstly deduced, then simulated in Matlab/Simulink and finally implemented in the ROWAS II system. Six able-bodied participants were recruited to use the ROWAS II system in passive mode, and then to estimate the active ankle mechanism. It was showed that the closed-loop position control algorithms enabled the ROWAS II system to track the target arm-leg walking movement patterns well in passive mode, with the tracking error of each joint <0.7°. The adjustable admittance control algorithms enabled the participants to voluntarily adjust the ankle movement by exerting various active force. Higher admittance gains enabled the participants to more easily adjust the movement trajectory of the ankle mechanism. The ROWAS II system is technically feasible to produce walking-like movement in the bilateral upper and lower limbs in passive mode, and the ankle mechanism has technical potential to provide various active ankle training during gait rehabilitation. This novel ROWAS II system can serve as a testbed for further investigation of interlimb neural coupling in response to voluntary ankle movement and is technically feasible to provide a new training paradigm of walking with arm swing and active ankle control

Admittance Control of the Ankle Mechanism in a Rotational Orthosis for Walking with Arm Swing

In order to provide an effective system for rehabilitation of walking, a new rotational orthosis for walking with arm swing, called ROWAS II, was developed. This study focused on development and implementation of admittance control of the ankle mechanism in the ROWAS II system for promoting active training. Firstly, the mechanical structure of the ankle mechanism is briefly introduced. Then the algorithms of the closed-loop position control and the admittance control for the ankle mechanism are described in detail. Four able-bodied participants were recruited to use the ankle mechanism running in passive and active modes. The experimental results showed that the ankle mechanism well tracked the target trajectory in passive mode. In active mode, the participants interacted with the ankle mechanism, and adjusted their ankle movement based on their active force. The ankle mechanism has the technical potential to meet the requirements of passive and active training in the ankle movement for patients in different post-stroke stages