A Study on Speed Control for Assisting Unit of Wheeled Walking Frames

在近年来的老龄化社会中，对轮式步行架的期望增加。轮式步行机是老年人或残疾人康复时使用的辅助设备。轮式步行机有室内型和室外型。户外型适用于携带行李行走困难的人或通常使用手杖的人。室内型步行机是医院、事业单位主要用于康复治疗的高支撑设备。两种传统的轮式行走架在上/下坡行走时都存在弱点。人们在向上行走时往往需要动力辅助，而在向下行走时则需要安全的行走支撑而不至于摔倒，本研究的目的就是利用广义内模控制（IMC）设计结构来解决目前轮式步行机存在的这些问题。为此，我们研制了一种轮式步行机助行机构的速度控制器。内模控制在工业控制技术中有着广泛的应用。针对轮式步行机速度控制问题，提出了一种基于广义内模控制结构的LQ控制方法，该方法基于一个两自由度伺服系统，并采用了一个基于滑模控制器的稳定控制器。该控制方法具有良好的干扰解耦和伺服补偿的良好的轨迹跟踪性能。实验结果表明，带伺服补偿的广义内模控制对轮式步行机助力单元的速度控制是有效的。所提出的方法的干扰解耦性能的影响，特别是向上和向下的斜坡。我们相信，辅助单元是有帮助的，有用的人谁需要的轮式步行架。轮式步行将用于老年人或残疾人，以独立生活。

In the aging society of recent years, the expectation for the wheeled walking frames increases. Wheeled walking frames are supporting equipments, to be used by elderly people or handicapped in rehabilitation. Wheeled walking frames have indoors type and outdoors type. The outdoor type uses the difficult person who walking with luggage or the person who is usually using the stick. The indoor type walking frames for hospital or institution is high supporting equipments for mostly rehabilitation. Both conventional wheeled walking frames have weakness in walking on upward / downward slope. People often need power assistance on upward, and need secure walking support without falling on downward.The purpose of this study is to solve these problems of current wheeled walking frames by using the generalized internal model control (IMC) design structure. Therefore, we develop a speed control for assisting unit of wheeled walking frames. The IMC design is widely used in industrial control technology. The control application to speed control of wheeled walking frames would be challenging by using the generalized IMC design structure with LQ control.The proposed method is based on a two-degree-of-freedom servo system using an observer-based stabilizing controller. The control method achieves good disturbance decoupling and good trajectory tracking performance with servo compensation. The experimental results showed that the generalized IMC with servo compensation was effective to speed control of the assisting unit for the wheeled walking frames. The disturbance decoupling property of the proposed method effects especially on going upward and downward slope.We believe that the assisting unit is helpful and useful for people who need the wheeled walking frames. The wheeled walking will be used by elderly or disable people in order to live independently.