脚部関節の相互補助による歩行補助装置の開発

抄録

As the number of elderly people in Japan increases, the number of people who have difficulty in daily walking is increasing. In order to solve this problem, it is required to develop a walking assist device that encourages the user to walk properly. Therefore, by using a link mechanism to mutually assist the torque generated in the knee and ankle to the other, it is possible to realize an auxiliary device that is completed only by the user without using actuators. This can be expected to improve the muscle strength and walking motivation of the user. The equipment manufactured in the previous research had three problems. The first was the heavy weight of the device, the second was the huge size of the device, and the third was that it could not be adapted to the wearer's physique. Therefore, in this research, linkages are made of resin, and the Parallel four-bar linkage mechanism is used to make the device smaller, lighter, and adaptable to the wearer's physique. The ratio of the torque of the hip joint and the knee joint of the manufactured device was investigated by simulation and the mechanical characteristics were verified.