Abstract
This paper presents the design of a modular full-body assistive exoskeleton (FB-AXO) for older adults which was developed with funding under the AAL funded AXO-SUIT project. Processes used to formulate a prioritized set of functional and design requirements via close end-user involvement are outlined and used in realising the exoskeleton. Design of the resulting mechanics and electronics details for the lower- and upper-body subsystems (LB-AXO and (UB-AXO)) are described. Innovative designs of shoulder and spine mechanisms are presented. The FB-AXO system comprises 27 degrees of freedom, of which 17 are passive and 10 active. The exoskeleton assists full-body motions such as walking, standing, bending, as well as performing lifting and carrying tasks to assist older users performing tasks of daily living.
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Acknowledgments
The work reported here is supported by the EU AAL Programme, Innovation Fund Denmark, Vinnova, Agentschap Innoveren & Ondernemen and Enterprise Ireland. MTD Precision Engineering, Cork, Ireland, are duely acknowledged for their contribution to design and prototype construction of the AXO-SUIT.
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Christensen, S. et al. (2019). AXO-SUIT - A Modular Full-Body Exoskeleton for Physical Assistance. In: Gasparetto, A., Ceccarelli, M. (eds) Mechanism Design for Robotics. MEDER 2018. Mechanisms and Machine Science, vol 66. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00365-4_52
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00365-4_52
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