User-safe orthosis based on compliant actuators: Mechanical design and control framework

Abstract

This paper deals with designing, developing and building one degree of freedom orthosis based on an active compliant actuator. To know human's intentions and the desired movements beforehand, we opted for electromyogram (EMG) signals collected by surface electrodes. Processing the EMG signals and controlling the orthosis are integrated into a unified framework that combine OpenSim and Robotic Operating System (ROS) frameworks, the developed unified framework would be also particularly useful for more complex orthosis. The proposed control framework has been successfully used to dynamically compensate the gravity and assist the orthosis user.