Wearable Material Handling System
First Claim
1. An exoskeleton, configurable to be coupled to a person, said exoskeleton comprising:
- first and second leg supports configurable to be coupled to a person'"'"'s lower limbs and rest on a support surface during a stance phase, wherein each leg, support includes a thigh link and a shank link;
first and second knee joints connecting the thigh links and shank links of the respective first and second leg supports to allow flexion and extension between respective shank and thigh links;
an exoskeleton trunk configurable to be coupled to a person'"'"'s upper body and rotatably connected to the thigh link of each of the first and second leg supports to allow for flexion and extension between the first and second leg supports and the exoskeleton trunk;
at least one hip torque generator configured to create torque between said exoskeleton trunk and one of the first and second thigh links; and
a load holding mechanism rotatably coupled to said exoskeleton trunk for selective movement of the load holding mechanism relative to the exoskeleton trunk, the load holding mechanism configured to support at least a portion of a weight of a load located in front of a person coupled to the exoskeleton, wherein when said exoskeleton is worn by a person, the at least one torque generator creates a first torque between said exoskeleton trunk and the one of the first and second thigh links in the stance phase, opposing a second torque generated on the exoskeleton by the weight of the load.
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Accused Products
Abstract
An exoskeleton configured to be coupled to a person includes an exoskeleton trunk and leg supports adapted to contact the ground. Hip torque generators extend between the exoskeleton trunk and respective leg supports. A load holding mechanism is rotatably coupled to the exoskeleton trunk, preferably via over-shoulder members configured to support a load in front of the person. In use, hip torque generators create torque between the exoskeleton trunk and respective leg supports in the stance phase, wherein at least one torque generator is configured to create a first torque between the exoskeleton trunk and one of the first and second leg supports in the stance phase opposing a second torque generated on the exoskeleton by a weight of the load. Load bearing sensors may be utilized to determine the torque generated by the load and communicate with a controller to control power to the torque generators.
81 Citations
42 Claims
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1. An exoskeleton, configurable to be coupled to a person, said exoskeleton comprising:
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first and second leg supports configurable to be coupled to a person'"'"'s lower limbs and rest on a support surface during a stance phase, wherein each leg, support includes a thigh link and a shank link; first and second knee joints connecting the thigh links and shank links of the respective first and second leg supports to allow flexion and extension between respective shank and thigh links; an exoskeleton trunk configurable to be coupled to a person'"'"'s upper body and rotatably connected to the thigh link of each of the first and second leg supports to allow for flexion and extension between the first and second leg supports and the exoskeleton trunk; at least one hip torque generator configured to create torque between said exoskeleton trunk and one of the first and second thigh links; and a load holding mechanism rotatably coupled to said exoskeleton trunk for selective movement of the load holding mechanism relative to the exoskeleton trunk, the load holding mechanism configured to support at least a portion of a weight of a load located in front of a person coupled to the exoskeleton, wherein when said exoskeleton is worn by a person, the at least one torque generator creates a first torque between said exoskeleton trunk and the one of the first and second thigh links in the stance phase, opposing a second torque generated on the exoskeleton by the weight of the load. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 31)
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30. A method for supporting an object using an exoskeleton configurable to be coupled to a person and including:
- first and second leg supports configurable to be coupled to a person'"'"'s lower limbs and rest on a support surface during a stance phase, wherein each leg support includes a thigh link and a shank link;
first and second knee joints connecting the thigh links and shank links of the respective first and second leg supports to allow flexion and extension between respective shank and thigh links;
an exoskeleton trunk configurable to be coupled to a person'"'"'s upper body and rotatably connected to the thigh link of each of the first and second leg supports to allow for flexion and extension between the first and second leg supports and the exoskeleton trunk;
a load holding mechanism coupled to said exoskeleton trunk and configurable to support at least a portion of a weight of the object located in front of a person coupled to the exoskeleton, and at least one hip torque generator configured to create torque between the exoskeleton trunk and one of the first and second thigh links in a stance phase, the method comprising;coupling the object to said load holding mechanism; and creating a first torque with the at least one torque generator between said exoskeleton trunk and the one of the first and second thigh links in the stance phase opposing a second torque generated on the exoskeleton by the weight of the object. - View Dependent Claims (32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41)
- first and second leg supports configurable to be coupled to a person'"'"'s lower limbs and rest on a support surface during a stance phase, wherein each leg support includes a thigh link and a shank link;
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42. A method for controlling an exoskeleton configurable to be coupled to a person, said exoskeleton, among other components, comprising first and second leg supports configurable to be coupled to a person'"'"'s lower limbs and configured to rest on the ground during a stance phase, an exoskeleton trunk rotatably connectable to said first and second leg supports, at least one hip torque generator configured to create torque between said exoskeleton trunk and one of the first and second leg supports in the stance phase, a power unit in communication with the at least one hip torque generator for generating a torque to the at least one hip torque generator, and a load holding mechanism, said method comprising:
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sensing a torque applied to said load holding mechanism by a load sensor; generating a signal representative of the torque applied to said load holding mechanism; processing a signal from the load sensor using said power unit; and applying a torque to the at least one hip torque generator to cancel at least a portion of the torque applied to the load holding mechanism.
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Specification