A5036145491- Prosthetics and Rehabilitation Robotics
- Muscle activation and electromyography studies
- Stroke Rehabilitation and Recovery
- Balance, Gait, and Falls Prevention
- Spinal Cord Injury Research
- Cerebral Palsy and Movement Disorders
- Lower Extremity Biomechanics and Pathologies
- Mechanical Circulatory Support Devices
- Ergonomics and Human Factors
- Diabetic Foot Ulcer Assessment and Management
- Occupational Health and Performance
- Robotic Locomotion and Control
- Sports injuries and prevention
- Winter Sports Injuries and Performance
- Soft Robotics and Applications
- Peripheral Artery Disease Management
- Foot and Ankle Surgery
- Total Knee Arthroplasty Outcomes
- Soil Mechanics and Vehicle Dynamics
- Robotic Mechanisms and Dynamics
- Robot Manipulation and Learning
- Mechanics and Biomechanics Studies
- Sports and Physical Education Research
Harvard University
2016-2023
Harvard University Press
2023
Inspire
2021
Evaluation of a soft exosuit designed to reduce metabolic requirements during walking.
Carrying load alters normal walking, imposes additional stress to the musculoskeletal system, and results in an increase energy consumption a consequent earlier onset of fatigue. This phenomenon is largely due increased work requirements lower extremity joints, turn requiring higher muscle activation. The aim this was assess biomechanical physiological effects multi-joint soft exosuit that applies assistive torques biological hip ankle joints during loaded walking. evaluated under three...
Recent advances in wearable robotic devices have demonstrated the ability to reduce metabolic cost of walking by assisting ankle joint. To achieve greater gains future it will be important determine optimal actuation parameters and explore effect other joints. The aim present work is investigate how timing hip extension assistance affects positive mechanical power delivered an exosuit its on biological joint during loaded walking. In this study, we evaluated 4 different assistive profiles...
The increasing capabilities of exoskeletons and powered prosthetics for walking assistance have paved the way more sophisticated individualized control strategies. In response to this opportunity, recent work on human-in-the-loop optimization has considered problem automatically tuning parameters based realtime physiological measurements. However, common use metabolic cost as a performance metric creates significant experimental challenges due its long measurement times low signal-to-noise...
Hemiparetic gait after stroke is typically asymmetric and energetically inefficient. A major contributor to walking deficits impaired paretic ankle function. Impaired plantarflexion (PF) reduces forward propulsion symmetry dorsiflexion (DF) diminishes ground clearance during swing. We have developed soft wearable robots (soft exosuits) assist PF DF stroke. Through experimental studies with poststroke patients, we demonstrated that exosuits can improve in walking, ultimately reducing the...
In this paper we describe an IMU-based iterative controller for hip extension assistance where the onset timing of is based on estimate maximum flexion angle. The was implemented a mono-articular soft exosuit coupled to lab-based multi-joint actuation platform that enables rapid reconfiguration different sensors and control strategy implementation. design motivated by model suit-human interface utilizes methodology includes gait detection step-by-step actuator position profile generation...
Locomotor impairments afflict more than 80% of people poststroke. Our group has previously developed a unilateral ankle exosuit aimed at assisting the paretic joint stroke survivors during walking. While studies to date have shown promising biomechanical and physiological changes, there remains opportunity better understand how changes in plantarflexion (PF) assistance profiles impact wearer response. In healthy populations, explicitly varying augmentation power been informative about users...
Different adaptation rates have been reported in studies involving ankle exoskeletons designed to reduce the metabolic cost of their wearers. This work aimed investigate energetic adaptations occurring over multiple training sessions, while walking with a soft exosuit assisting hip joint. The participants attended five sessions within 20 days. They walked carrying load 20.4 kg for minutes powered and unpowered. Percentage change net between unpowered conditions improved across from -6.2 ±...
Only very recently, studies have shown that it is possible to reduce the metabolic rate of unloaded and loaded walking using robotic ankle exoskeletons. Some obtained this result by means high positive work assistance while others combined negative assistance. There no consensus about isolated contribution Therefore, aim present study examine effect varying at joint maintaining a fixed level with multi-articular soft exosuit. We tested eight participants during 1.5 ms−1 23-kg backpack....
Previous ankle exoskeleton assistance techniques that were able to demonstrate metabolic reductions can be categorized into those delivered moment profiles similar the biological throughout stance phase, and others positive power only during push off. Both a powered-off condition compared in treadmill walking (1.5 m s-1) with soft exosuit. We hypothesized both result reduction when providing level of average exosuit at each (0.12 W kg-1) hip (0.02 while underlying global center-of-mass local...
Abstract Hemiparetic walking after stroke is typically slow, asymmetric, and inefficient, significantly impacting activities of daily living. Extensive research shows that functional, intensive, task-specific gait training instrumental for effective rehabilitation, characteristics our group aims to encourage with soft robotic exosuits. However, standard clinical assessments may lack the precision frequency detect subtle changes in intervention efficacy during both conventional...
Abstract Background Soft robotic exosuits can provide partial dorsiflexor and plantarflexor support in parallel with paretic muscles to improve poststroke walking capacity. Previous results indicate that baseline ability may impact a user’s leverage the exosuit assistance, while effects on continuous walking, stability, muscle slacking have not been evaluated. Here we evaluated of portable ankle during comfortable overground 19 individuals chronic hemiparesis. We also compared two...
ABSTRACT Although it is clear that walking over different irregular terrain associated with altered biomechanics, there little understanding of how we quickly adapt to unexpected variations in terrain. This study aims investigate which adaptive strategies humans adopt when performing an unanticipated step on surface, specifically a small bump. Nine healthy male participants walked at their preferred speed along straight walkway during five conditions: four involving bumps two heights, and...
Different groups developed wearable robots for walking assistance, but there is still a need methods to quickly tune actuation parameters each robot and population or sometimes even individual users. Protocols where are held constant multiple minutes have traditionally been used evaluating responses parameter changes such as metabolic rate symmetry. However, these discrete protocols time-consuming. Recently, proposed changed in continuous way. The aim of the present study was compare effects...
Walking after stroke is characterized by slow, asymmetric, and inefficient gait. A major contributor to walking deficits impaired paretic ankle function. During pre-swing phase, plantarflexion reduces the limb's contribution forward propulsion. swing dorsiflexion inhibits ground clearance limb. Our laboratory developed a lightweight, soft wearable robot (an exosuit) that interfaces with limb via functional textiles actively assist (PF) (DF) during walking. The objective of this study was...
Portable exoskeletons are remarkable machines that can enable individuals who unable to walk, walk again <sup xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">1</sup> . Our group has developed soft robots (exosuits) made from functional textiles enhance the walking performance of ambulatory poststroke. Exosuits function by transmitting mechanical power generated actuators a wearer's paretic limb via interaction Bowden cables and...
The addition of a load during walking requires changes in the movement pattern. investigation dynamic joint stiffness behavior may help to understand lower limb joints' contribution these changes. This study aimed investigate joints response increased carried while walking. Thirteen participants walked two conditions: unloaded (an empty backpack) and loaded (the same backpack plus added mass corresponding 30% body mass). Dynamic was calculated as linear slope regression line on moment-angle...