Development of actuation system for wearable robots using spiral spring

Wearable robots, or exoskeleton robots, are getting great attention because of the increasing need for seniors, disabled people, and workers in extreme environments. One of the most important requirements of the exoskeleton robot is preventing fatigues of these people. Although exoskeleton robots have been developed, there are still limitations on the user's comfort and detection of his or her intention of motion. To improve on these aspects, spiral spring and sensor band are proposed to be used as actuation and sensor components in this paper. The spiral spring's efficiency for wearable robots is investigated theoretically and the experiments using the spiral spring and sensor band are conducted. The experimental results demonstrate the proposed actuation and sensor system could improve the performance of the exoskeleton robots.