Año: 2016
Autores: Cifuentes, C.;extern341; Frizera Neto, A.; Freire Bastos, T.; Carelli, R.;
Resumen: Human mobility is affected by different types of
pathologies and also decreases gradually with age. In this context,
Smart Walkers may offer important benefits for human assistedgait
in rehabilitation and functional compensation scenarios. This
paper proposes a new interaction strategy for human–walker
cooperation. The presented strategy is based on the acquisition
of human gait parameters by means of data fusion from inertial
measurement units and a laser range finder. This paper includes
the mathematical formulation of the controller, simulations, and
practical experimentation of the interaction strategy, in order to
show the performance of the control system, including the parameter
detection methodology. In the experimental study, despite the
continuous oscillation during the walking, the parameter estimation
was suitable for assisted ambulation, showing an appropriate
adaptive behavior with changes in human linear velocity. Finally,
the controller keeps the walker continuously following in front
of the human gait, and it is shown how the walker orientation
follows the human orientation during the real experiments.
Link: 10.1109/JSYST.2014.2318698