Desenvolvimento de um Atuador Elástico em Série para o Acionamento da Junta do Quadril do Exoesqueleto Exo-TAO

Wilian M. dos Santos; Felix M. Escalante Ortega; Adriano A. G. Siqueira

doi:10.20906/CBA2022/3212

Wilian M. dos Santos Universidade Estadual Paulista (Unesp), Faculdade de Engenharia, São João da Boa Vista, SP
Felix M. Escalante Ortega Universidade de São Paulo (USP), Escola de Engenharia de São Carlos (EESC), Departamento de Engenharia Mecânica, São Carlos, SP
Adriano A. G. Siqueira Universidade de São Paulo (USP), Escola de Engenharia de São Carlos (EESC), Departamento de Engenharia Mecânica, São Carlos, SP

DOI: https://doi.org/10.20906/CBA2022/3212

Keywords: Robotics, Exoskeleton, Series Elastic Actuator, Torque Control

Abstract

This article deals with the design and control of a new rotational series elastic actuator (SEAr) to drive the hip joint of the Exo-TAO exoskeleton. The proposed actuator consists of a flat DC motor, a Harmonic Drive gear and a customized torsion spring. Torque control is implemented to ensure secure and compliant interaction with the user. Experiments with the Exo-TAO, configured with zero impedance, showed that a healthy individual can walk wearing the exoskeleton with reasonable comfort and a near-natural gait pattern.