航天员低重力步行训练被动外骨骼机器人模拟

A Passive Exoskeleton Robotic Simulator for Reduced-Gravity Locomotion Training of Astronaut

针对月球或火星登陆航天员在地面进行低重力步行模拟训练的需要,提出一种采用被动重力平衡技术的外骨骼机器人系统。该系统由一台跑步机和一套可穿戴的被动机械外骨骼组成,通过将人体各主要部件的重力按比例分布转嫁到外骨骼上来达到低重力模拟效果,因此其不但可以平衡任意比例(0%-100%)的人体重力,而且可以使受训者感受到各主要关节失去相同比例重力载荷的效果,从而达到逼真模拟低重力步行。由于系统完全被动,无需施加主动关节控制力矩,同时也不用进行关节运动的离线或在线精确规划,从而避免了复杂的关节控制器及其稳定性设计和分析。动力学仿真结果表明,该外骨骼机器人系统能够逼真地模拟出不同重力条件下的步行效果。

An exoskeleton robotic system based on the passive gravity compensation technique is proposed to assist the physical simulation of reduced-gravity locomotion for the on-earth training of astronauts walking on the moon or Mars. This innovative simulation system based on the exoskeleton robotics and the passive gravity compensation technique is composed of a treadmill and a wearable passive exoskeleton mechanism for balancing any amount （from 0% to 100% ） of the gravity of human body and its limbs so that a person wearing such a passive exoskeleton will experience a realistic reduced gravity feeling when he/she moves in the treadmill. Because the proposed exoskeleton robot is completely passive, no active joint control torques are required, and it need not to consider the problem of joint control system design and its stability issue. Dynamics simulation results demonstrate that the proposed passive exoskeleton robotic simulator is capable of simulating reduced gravity locomotion for astronaut in different levels of gravity.