三対六筋構造に着目した人工二関節筋の下肢への装着によるペダリング時の踏力特性

抄録

There are several researches about developing wearable robots. Most of them are designed to assist human power. On the other hand, wearable robots which help humans to act skillfully are in the early stages of developing. Therefore an artificial bi-articular muscle was attached to a body noting three pairs of six muscles: the arrangement of muscles that enables humans to perform ingeniously. And an experiment was done to show how an artificial bi-articular muscle influences on toe force and stiffness. To investigate effect during motion, an artificial muscle was attached to where a muscle does not exist. In this experiment, a subject did pedaling motion. Pedaling was chosen as an experimental motion because joint angles vary largely and a subject can do likewise without paying attention to. A subject rides on a bicycle attached to a bicycle trainer to investigate pedaling force by installing an artificial bi-articular muscle and applying tension between an ankle and a knee joint. To conduct this experiment, a bi-articular muscle actuator, tension sensors, a crank measuring device, and joint angle measuring devices are developed. By using a power meter and these devices, pedaling force and a joint angle are measured in a certain crank angle. As a result, it is revealed that pedaling force or a joint angle can be changed by attaching a bi-articular muscle.