Experimental design verification of a compliant shoulder exoskeleton

Many existing exoskeletons have followed a similar design approach: a rigid kinematic chain is actuated to mobilize a human wearer. However, in a clinical setting for rehabilitation where one exoskeleton is shared by multiple patients, it will be difficult to guarantee on-site adjustments can make the rigid exoskeleton fit each patient kinematically perfectly. This paper proposed an alternative exoskeleton design that uses compliant continuum mechanisms. Its intrinsic flexibility adapts to different human anatomy automatically. Design concepts and component descriptions were elaborated for this shoulder exoskeleton, including kinematics, construction, actuation, transmission schemes, etc. A series of experiments were conducted to characterize shapes of the flexible members within the continuum structure as well as demonstrate the effectiveness of using such an exoskeleton to assist different patients with their limb motions.