University of Twente Student Theses
Measuring the assistance provided by sensorized passive back-assist exosuits during industrial applications
Subramanian, Swathika (2024) Measuring the assistance provided by sensorized passive back-assist exosuits during industrial applications.
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| Abstract: | Low-back pain is a commonly reported health problem amongst industry workers due to peak mechanical loading of the spine. Forces exerted by back-assist exosuits can mitigate peak compression loading and muscle workload. To ensure optimal force transmission to the user, measuring human-exosuit interaction forces is necessary. Existing methods include indirect representation of exosuit forces that involved multiple assumptions and deployment of computationally expensive tools. Alternatively, direct methods utilizing physical sensors can provide instantaneous measurements with minimal setup requirements. Hence, this study aimed at measuring passive exosuit forces exerted on the user’s trunk from two industrial exosuits using a sensor-based approach. Furthermore, the measured interaction forces were related to marker-based forces, user’s back muscle activity and anthropometry. The two industry exosuits used were Darwing and Auxivo.Ten participants performed tasks primarily involving stoop and squat movements that are often associated with industry tasks. Data from force sensors/load cells, EMG sensors and optical markers were collected. Results showed significant difference in interaction forces only for stoop trials in both exosuits. Comparing load cell and marker forces showed significant difference in dynamic trials with Auxivo. Effect of trunk flexion angles and interaction forces on muscle activations were minimal. Inter-subject variability in interaction forces were due to difference in shoulder-width across users. Thus, measuring interaction forces provided insightful information about performance of the exosuits and its effect on physiological parameters. |
| Item Type: | Essay (Master) |
| Faculty: | TNW: Science and Technology |
| Programme: | Biomedical Engineering MSc (66226) |
| Link to this item: | https://purl.utwente.nl/essays/104180 |
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