Collaborative Research: Integrating Optimal Function and Compliant Mechanisms for Ubiquitous Lower-Limb Powered Prostheses

合作研究：将优化功能和合规机制整合到无处不在的下肢动力假肢中

• 批准号: 2344765
• 负责人: Edgar Bolivar-Nieto
• 金额: $ 35.72万
• 依托单位: University of Notre Dame
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2024
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2024-09-01 至 2027-08-31
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2344765&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Collaborative; Research; Integrating; Optimal; Function

The majority of lower-limb prostheses are passive. They can dissipate and store mechanical power but cannot generate positive net power. The lack of power generation limits movements that require the user to move against gravity, such as going upstairs or transitioning from sitting to standing. This lack of power may induce uneven loads in the body, which can increase the likelihood of chronic back pain and increase the effort to walk. Active prostheses have the potential to overcome these fundamental challenges. However, commercially available powered prostheses are heavier, noisier, more expensive, and generally less accessible than unpowered versions. The overall goal of this project is to reimagine existing rigid prosthetic components as compliant mechanisms that reduce mass, energy consumption, audible noise, and part count of powered prostheses. Muscles take advantage of the elasticity of tendons (in series with the muscle) and ligaments (in parallel with the muscle) to efficiently transfer power from the muscle to the joints. This project will provide a new understanding of how to engineer elastic components in parallel with electric motors as engineered ligaments to make powered prostheses more attractive and accessible.The performance and behavior of compliant mechanisms depend on three fundamental factors: 1) material properties, 2) geometry, and 3) load-deflection response. This project will develop new knowledge to design the load-deflection response and geometry of compliant mechanisms that connect in parallel with electric motors to reduce motor torque. This reduction implies lighter, more energy-efficient, and quieter prostheses, as it requires lower reduction ratios, fewer gears meshing, lighter motors, and less heat dissipation. This collaborative project between the University of Notre Dame and Brigham Young University will establish two scientific contributions: 1) a robust convex optimization framework to design the load-deflection response of a parallel spring that guarantees motor torque reduction in multiple locomotion activities despite parametric uncertainty (e.g., user mass, walking speed); and 2) a design framework for compliant mechanisms with optimal load-deflection profiles to reimagine existing rigid components and implement the benefits of parallel compliance without a tradeoff in terms of mechanical complexity or extra components. The application of these innovations will result in an Open-Source Compliant Ankle, with open-source designs available online that complement the existing NSF-funded Open-Source Leg. The research team will collaborate with non-profit organization 2ft Prosthetics and local Amputee Support Groups to incorporate the feedback from prosthetic users, manufacturers, and clinicians into new designs. The outcomes of this research will include the organization of a conference workshop, new content in a graduate-level class on Wearable Robotics, and a 3-week summer program for local middle schoolers interested in STEM education.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.

大多数下limb假体是被动的。他们可以消散并存储机械能力，但不能产生正净功率。缺乏发电限制的动作需要用户反对重力，例如上楼或从坐着过渡到站立。 缺乏力量可能会导致体内不均匀的负载，从而增加慢性背痛的可能性并增加行走的努力。活跃的假体有可能克服这些基本挑战。但是，市售的动力假肢更重，更嘈杂，更昂贵，并且通常比无动力的版本更容易获得。该项目的总体目标是将现有的刚性假体组件重新构想为符合质量，能源消耗，听觉噪声以及动力假体的一部分计数的合规机制。肌肉利用肌腱（与肌肉串联）和韧带（与肌肉平行）的弹性有效地将功率从肌肉传递到关节。该项目将提供有关如何与电动机作为工程韧带并行设计弹性组件的新理解，以使动力假体更具吸引力和可访问性。兼容的机制的性能和行为取决于三个基本因素：1）材料特性，2）几何和3）载荷 - 触发反射响应响应响应。该项目将开发新的知识，以设计与电动机并行连接以减少电动机扭矩的兼容机制的负载偏转响应和几何形状。这种减少意味着更轻，更节能，更安静的假肢，因为它需要较低的减少比率，更少的齿轮夹带，更轻的电动机和更少的散热耗散。巴黎圣母大学与杨百翰大学之间的合作项目将建立两种科学贡献：1）一个强大的凸优化框架，以设计平行弹簧的负载反射响应，以保证尽管有参数性不确定性，但仍可以减少多个Lokomotion活动的电动机扭矩（例如，用户质量，步行速度，使用者，使用量）; 2）具有最佳载荷反射配置文件的合规机制的设计框架，可重新构想现有的刚性组件，并在机械复杂性或额外组件方面实现平行合规性的好处。这些创新的应用将导致符合开源的踝关节，并在线提供开源设计，以补充现有的NSF资助的开源腿。研究团队将与非营利组织2FT假肢和本地截肢者支持小组合作，以将假体用户，制造商和临床医生的反馈纳入新设计中。这项研究的结果将包括组织研讨会的组织，有关可穿戴机器人技术的研究生级课程的新内容以及针对对STEM教育感兴趣的本地中学生进行的为期3周的夏季计划。该奖项反映了NSF的法定任务，并被认为是通过该基金会的知识分子和更广泛的影响来评估的支持。