Passive exoskeletons for assisting limb movement.
This article presents the state of the art in passive devices for enhancing limb movement in people with neuromuscular disabilities. Both upper- and lower-limb projects and devices are described. Special emphasis is placed on a passive functional upper-limb orthosis called the Wilmington Robotic Exoskeleton (WREX). The development and testing of the WREX with children with limited arm strength are described. The exoskeleton has two links and 4 degrees of freedom. It uses linear elastic elements that balance the effects of gravity in three dimensions. The experiences of five children with arthrogryposis who used the WREX are described.
Rahman
Tariq
T
Department of Biomedical Research, Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children, 1600 Rockland Road, Wilmington, DE 19899, USA. trahman@nemours.org
Sample
Whitney
W
Jayakumar
Shanmuga
S
King
Marilyn Marnie
MM
Wee
Jin Yong
JY
Seliktar
Rahamim
R
Alexander
Michael
M
Scavina
Mena
M
Clark
Alisa
A
D000293:Adolescent; D001176:Arthrogryposis / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D002648:Child; D004867:Equipment Design; D005121:Extremities; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009989:Orthotic Devices; D012371:Robotics