1P1-L06 Development of a Closed-Fitting-Type Walking Assistance Machine on Leg with a Self-Contained Control System

Abstract

A walking assistance machine using a flexible shaft was developed. A combination of the flexible shaft with a worm gear was successfully adopted on this machine to develop its appearance simple and its size compact. This machine is controlled with a hybrid-control system both torque and angle at ankle and knee joints. In this system, the torsion spring constant of the flexible shaft is taken into account to the control power and the rotating angle of the motor. To expand the area of where an equipped parson can walk with the machine, a self-contained system which controlled with SH-4 microcomputer and actuators which consisted of motors and gears were put in the small backpack, and Lithium-ion battery was utilized. Therefore, the equipped parson can freely walk both in and out of doors.