A biologically-inspired multi-joint soft exosuit that can reduce the energy cost of loaded walking.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Carrying load alters normal walking, imposes additional stress to the musculoskeletal system, and results in an increase in energy consumption and a consequent earlier onset of fatigue. This phenomenon is largely due to increased work requirements in lower extremity joints, in turn requiring higher muscle activation. The aim of this work was to assess the biomechanical and physiological effects of a multi-joint soft exosuit that applies assistive torques to the biological hip and ankle joints during loaded walking.

Methods

The exosuit was evaluated under three conditions: powered (EXO_ON), unpowered (EXO_OFF) and unpowered removing the equivalent mass of the device (EXO_OFF_EMR). Seven participants walked on an instrumented split-belt treadmill and carried a load

SUBMITTER: Panizzolo FA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4864923 | biostudies-literature | 2016 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature