Initial investigation into the effect of an Active/Passive exoskeleton on hammer curl performance in healthy subjects

Abstract

Assistive robotic devices are traditionally constrained by their power source. Entirely passive devices exist, but are limited by their fixed mechanical parameters. This work introduces a new device that can provide active and passive assistance. This device provides assistance in a passive mode, but retains the actively change this passive response. This paper examines the effect different passive parameter settings have on healthy subjects performing hammer curls. Passive parameter settings to either increase or decrease the number of curls a subject could perform were found. An average increase of 84% or a decrease of 33% in curls was produced by varying the passive parameters. These effects were seen across all six subjects. This indicates that there is potential for the Active/Passive framework to provide lightweight, energy efficient assistance.