Dynamics Computation of Soft-Rigid Hybrid-Link System and Its Application to Motion Analysis of an Athlete Wearing Sport Prosthesis

This paper presents a motion analysis framework for an athlete wearing sport-specific flexible prosthesis based on the soft-rigid hybrid-link system. Such a motion analysis is a challenging problem because we need to consider the interaction force between the rigid human skeleton system and a flexible prosthesis. However, most of human musculoskeletal models are based on the computation framework of a rigid-body multi-link system. Recently in soft robotics research field, fast and efficient modeling methods were developed for a flexible rod deformation, which allows us to build a hybrid-link system that integrates rigid-link and soft-bodies in a unified formulation. We apply inverse kinematics of the hybrid-link system to motion reconstruction from a motion captured data, and also present the estimation of the joint torques and ground reaction force by inverse dynamics. Through a human subject experiment, we show that the inverse dynamics achieved approximately 12% error on the ground reaction force estimation. Furthermore, we provide the muscle force estimation considering muscle amputation and interaction force with the prosthesis leg deformation.

Simulation of Adaptive Running with Flexible Sports Prosthesis using Reinforcement Learning of Hybrid-link System

This study proposes a reinforcement learning-based adaptive running motion simulation for a unilateral transtibial amputee with the flexibility of a leaf-spring-type sports prosthesis using hybrid-link system. The design and selection of sports prostheses often rely on trial and error. A comprehensive whole-body dynamics analysis that considers the interaction between human motion and prosthetic deformation could provide valuable insights for user-specific design and selection. The hybrid-link system facilitates whole-body dynamics analysis by incorporating the Piece-wise Constant Strain model to represent the flexible deformation of the prosthesis. Based on this system, the simulation methodology generates whole-body dynamic motions of a unilateral transtibial amputee through a reinforcement learning-based approach, which combines imitation learning from motion capture data with accurate prosthetic dynamics computation. We simulated running motions under different virtual prosthetic stiffness conditions and analyzed the metabolic cost of transport obtained from the simulations, suggesting that variations in stiffness influence running performance. Our findings demonstrate the potential of this approach for simulation and analysis under virtual conditions that differ from real conditions.

Design Methodology of Hydraulically-driven Soft Robotic Gripper for a Large and Heavy Object

This paper presents a design methodology of a hydraulically-driven soft robotic gripper for grasping a large and heavy object -- approximately 10 - 20 kg with 20 - 30 cm diameter. Most existing soft grippers are pneumatically actuated with several hundred kPa pressure, and cannot generate output force sufficient for such a large and heavy object. Instead of pneumatic actuation, hydraulic actuation has a potential to generate much larger power by several MPa pressure. In this study, we develop a hydraulically-driven soft gripper, in which its basic design parameters are determined based on a mathematical model that represents the relationship among the driving pressure, bending angle, object mass and grasping force. Moreover, we selected materials suitable for grasping a heavier object, based on the finite element analysis result of the detailed design. We report experimental results on a 20 kg object grasping and closed-loop control of the finger bending angle.

Effect of Haptic Feedback on Avoidance Behavior and Visual Exploration in Dynamic VR Pedestrian Environment

Human crowd simulation in virtual reality (VR) is a powerful tool with potential applications including emergency evacuation training and assessment of building layout. While haptic feedback in VR enhances immersive experience, its effect on walking behavior in dense and dynamic pedestrian flows is unknown. Through a user study, we investigated how haptic feedback changes user walking motion in crowded pedestrian flows in VR. The results indicate that haptic feedback changed users' collision avoidance movements, as measured by increased walking trajectory length and change in pelvis angle. The displacements of users' lateral position and pelvis angle were also increased in the instantaneous response to a collision with a non-player character (NPC), even when the NPC was inside the field of view. Haptic feedback also enhanced users' awareness and visual exploration when an NPC approached from the side and back. Furthermore, variation in walking speed was increased by the haptic feedback. These results suggested that the haptic feedback enhanced users' sensitivity to a collision in VR environment.

Viscoelasticity Estimation of Sports Prosthesis by Energy-minimizing Inverse Kinematics and Its Validation by Forward Dynamics

In this study, we present a method for estimating the viscoelasticity of a leaf-spring sports prosthesis using advanced energy minimizing inverse kinematics based on the Piece-wise Constant Strain (PCS) model to reconstruct the three-dimensional dynamic behavior. Dynamic motion analysis of the athlete and prosthesis is important to clarify the effect of prosthesis characteristics on foot function. However, three-dimensional deformation calculations of the prosthesis and viscoelasticity have rarely been investigated. In this letter, we apply the PCS model to a prosthesis deformation, which can calculate flexible deformation with low computational cost and handle kinematics and dynamics. In addition, we propose an inverse kinematics calculation method that is consistent with the material properties of the prosthesis by considering the minimization of elastic energy. Furthermore, we propose a method to estimate the viscoelasticity by solving a quadratic programming based on the measured motion capture data. The calculated strains are more reasonable than the results obtained by conventional inverse kinematics calculation. From the result of the viscoelasticity estimation, we simulate the prosthetic motion by forward dynamics calculation and confirm that this result corresponds to the measured motion. These results indicate that our approach adequately models the dynamic phenomena, including the viscoelasticity of the prosthesis.