Auto-LEE: A Novel Autonomous Lower Extremity Exoskeleton for Walking Assistance

Abstract

Wearable exoskeletons have been proven to be efficacious in aiding walking for individuals suffering from lower limb mobility disorder. However, the application of most existing devices is limited to inconvenience of usage, e.g., complicated training and unnatural gait. This paper presents a novel autonomous lower extremity exoskeleton, Auto-LEE, for the purpose of improving the practicality of walking assistive devices as well as simplifying their application process. The developed exoskeleton consists of two robotic legs, and each of them has 5 active degrees-of-freedom (DOFs) to independently control the rotations of hip, knee and ankle joints in the sagittal and coronal planes, which enables the device to possess self-balancing ability and flexible gait. The modular design concept is introduced into the structure and hardware development of Auto-LEE, making it more convenient to be assembled and maintained. In order to validate the self-balancing walking ability, virtual prototype simulation and preliminary experiment on flat terrain are implemented.