In this paper, gait motions with a three-wheeled walker were measured and analyzed, when the rear caster of the walker is pivotable or not. From the results, when the rear caster is pivotable, rotational motions of the walker and the waist, which were different from natural rotation of the waist during normal gait motion, were observed.

In recent years, there are many devices developed to assist walking with the aging society. However, it is difficult that the device using a control system is too expensive to spreads generally, which hinders the user's independent action. For many people needing walk assistance, the development of being the user's independent action and the inexpensive device is expected. Therefore, in this study we focused on the functional relationship between hip and knee joint angles as the structure of the device. By reproducing the functional relationship between hip and knee joint angles, it is thought that walking can be assisted while mutually at hip and knee joints. The device is configured with a planar linkage. In this paper, we describe the design of the device using planar link mechanism and the result of the functional relation of angles.

In today's aging society, a variety of walking aids have been developed for the elderly or those who have difficulty walking due to injury. The main type of walking aids used in daily life are inexpensive simple walking aids such as canes, etc. Simple walking aids are used to reduce the load on the legs by placing a part of the body weight on the cane or walker. If the user relies on these devices, the user's posture when walking may become unsteady, and a load different from the original walking may be applied to the user. For the reason, the development of products with simple structures is desired to reduce the cost of equipment for the widespread use of welfare machines. Therefore, in this research, authors developed an inexpensive and lightweight walking aid using a link mechanism that does not require electronic control. The purpose of this research is to develop a walking aid for dynamic gait that can be used by more people. The device does not require electronic control, and the user drives the device with his/her own arm movements. The device is a planar four-bar mechanism that converts rotational motion into oscillatory motion to improve the transmission of force. The mechanism constants of a device with a planar six-bar mechanism, which was the subject of a previous study, were changed, and the auxiliary effects were compared with those of a planar four-bar mechanism.

In today's aging society, a variety of walking aids have been developed for the elderly or those who have difficulty walking due to injury. The main type of walking aids used in daily life are inexpensive simple walking aids such as canes, etc. Simple walking aids are used to reduce the load on the legs by placing a part of the body weight on the cane or walker. If the user relies on these devices, the user's posture when walking may become unsteady, and a load different from the original walking may be applied to the user. For the reason, the development of products with simple structures is desired to reduce the cost of equipment for the widespread use of welfare machines. Therefore, in this research, authors developed an inexpensive and lightweight walking aid using a link mechanism that does not require electronic control. The purpose of this research is to develop a walking aid for dynamic gait that can be used by more people. The device does not require electronic control, and the user drives the device with his/her own arm movements. The device is a planar four-bar mechanism that converts rotational motion into oscillatory motion to improve the transmission of force. An experimental comparison was made between a device with a planar six-bar mechanism, which was the subject of a previous study, and a device with a planar four-bar mechanism, in which the mechanism constants were changed.

With the increase of the elderly population, the assistive technology for their walking has been needed. Although some walking support devices have shown positive effects, they still have problems for easy to suit it by oneself. In this study, it is aimed to develop a new walking assist device which can be used for hemiplegia and has feasibility of adjustment for assisting power without any actuators. As a first step, a motion transmission mechanism between lower limbs has been proposed and implemented as a prototype. The basic function and effects of motion transmission from unaffected side to affected side without any control are verified through the experiments using the prototype with a simple biped leg model. In addition, it is confirmed that the variation of attachment positions of transmission mechanism on the bipedal model offers the adjustability of transmitted torque. And, it is verified that the attachment of the proposed mechanism on the biped model has the positive effects on the periodicity and stability of the gait motion. As a future work, it is needed to redesign a motion transmission mechanism which suits for the actual human leg and its motion with the safety and the consideration for the load to the unaffected limb.