CAREER: Versatile Wearable Robots for Rehabilitation of Children with Gait Disabilities

这项学院早期职业发展(Career)补助金旨在提高动力膝关节外骨骼的可用性和舒适性，该外骨骼旨在改善脑瘫儿童的步态生物力学和步行代谢经济。通过利用新颖的致动器和可穿戴式传感器技术，PI将开发一种外骨骼系统，该系统可以随着儿童的成长而在能力上“增长”。PI还将设计一个任务识别系统(意图估计)，以促进高级外骨骼控制。这种高水平的控制是使用无模型自适应控制器来增强的，该控制器可以提供用户特定的关节扭矩辅助。该项目将通过建立一种新的儿童步态康复方法的理论基础和物理实现来促进科学进步和国民健康，这种方法是安全、轻便、顺从、智能的，并且能够在社区环境中使用。针对小学生和高中生的综合研究和教育计划和创新性外联活动将促进具有全球竞争力的STEM劳动力队伍以及妇女和代表性不足的少数群体参与STEM。进一步发展“软体机器人动物园”的努力将提高公众的科学素养和与机器人的参与度。该项目寻求使用一种新型的动力膝关节外骨骼来减少脑瘫儿童的步态损伤，该外骨骼可以根据不断变化的任务条件和不断变化的用户步态转换意图来预测对关节扭矩辅助的不断变化的需求。主要研究目标有三个：基于准直接驱动可穿戴机器人的人机交互优化；基于可穿戴传感器技术的脑瘫儿童运动学活动分类和步态模式检测；以及用于辅助关节力矩个性化的强化学习自适应控制器的开发。综上所述，这些研究活动承诺在现实世界中为患有肢体残疾的儿童加强人/机器合作。这一奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) grant seeks to enhance the usability and comfort of a powered knee exoskeleton that is designed to improve gait biomechanics and walking metabolic economy in children with cerebral palsy. By leveraging novel actuators and wearable sensor technology, the PI will develop an exoskeleton system that can "grow" in capability as the child grows. The PI will also design a task-recognition system (intent estimation) that facilitates high-level exoskeleton control. That high-level control is augmented using a model-free adaptive controller that can provide user-specific joint torque assistance. This project will promote the progress of science and advance the national health by establishing theoretical foundations for - and a physical realization of - a new approach to rehabilitating pediatric gait, one that is safe, lightweight, compliant, smart, and able to be used in community settings. An integrated research and education plan and innovative outreach activities targeted to elementary- and high-school students will promote a globally competitive STEM workforce and the participation of women and underrepresented minorities in STEM. Efforts to further develop a "Soft Robot Zoo" will increase public scientific literacy and engagement with robotics.This project seeks to reduce gait impairments in children with cerebral palsy using a novel powered knee exoskeleton that can anticipate changing needs for joint torque assistance based on changing task conditions as well as changing user intentions with regard to gait transitions. Three main research objectives are researched: an optimization of human-machine interaction using "quasi-direct drive actuated" wearable robotics; kinematic activity classification and gait mode detection in children with cerebral palsy using wearable sensor technology; and the development of a reinforcement learning (RL-based) adaptive controller for assistive joint torque personalization. Taken together, these research activities promise to enhance human/machine collaboration in a real-world setting for children contending with physical disability.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.