Background: Many soldiers are expected to carry heavy loads over extended distances, often resulting in physical and mental fatigue. In this study, the design and testing of an autonomous leg exoskeleton is presented. The aim of the device is to reduce the energetic cost of loaded walking. In addition, we present the Augmentation Factor, a general framework of exoskeletal performance that unifies our results with the varying abilities of previously developed exoskeletons.Methods:We developed an autonomous battery powered exoskeleton that is capable of providing substantial levels of positive mechanical power to the ankle during the push-off region of stance phase. We measured the metabolic energy consumption of seven subjects walking on a level treadmill at 1.5 m/s, while wearing a 23 kg vest.Results:During the push-off portion of the stance phase, the exoskeleton applied positive mechanical power with an average across the gait cycle equal to 23 ± 2 W (11.5 W per ankle). Use of the autonomous leg exoskeleton significantly reduced the metabolic cost of walking by 36 ± 12 W, which was an improvement of 8 ± 3% (p = 0.025) relative to the control condition of not wearing the exoskeleton.Conclusions:In the design of leg exoskeletons, the results of this study highlight the importance of minimizing exoskeletal power dissipation and added limb mass, while providing substantial positive power during the walking gait cycle.
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机译：背景：预计许多士兵会在较远的距离携带重物，这通常会导致身心疲劳。在这项研究中，提出了自主腿外骨骼的设计和测试。该设备的目的是减少步行步行的能量消耗。此外，我们提出了增强因子（Augmentation Factor），这是外骨骼性能的通用框架，可将我们的结果与以前开发的外骨骼的各种功能统一起来。方法：我们开发了一种自主的电池供电外骨骼，能够为骨骼提供大量的正机械动力。站立阶段下移区域时脚踝受伤。我们测量了七名受试者穿着23公斤背心，以1.5 m / s的速度在水平跑步机上行走时的代谢能消耗。结果：在站立阶段的下垂阶段，外骨骼施加了正的机械动力，平均步态周期等于23±2瓦（每脚踝11.5瓦）。自主腿部外骨骼的使用显着降低了步行的代谢成本36±12 W，相对于不佩戴外骨骼的控制条件而言，改善了8 improvement±3％（p = 0.025）。腿部外骨骼，这项研究的结果突出了最小化骨骼外动力耗散和增加肢体质量，同时在步行步态周期中提供大量正动力的重要性。
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