Design and control of a robotic lower extremity exoskeleton for gait rehabilitation

Abstract

Design and control of an active knee rehabilitation orthotic system called ANdROS that was designed as a wearable and portable gait rehabilitation tool is presented. A corrective force field that reinforces a desired gait pattern is applied to the patient's impaired leg around the knee joint via an impedance controlled exoskeleton. The impedance controller is synchronized with the patient's walking phase which is estimated from the kinematic measurements of the healthy leg. The performance of the controller is evaluated through bench-testing.