National Science Foundation - Where Discoveries Begin

New class of wearable robotic technology can assist with and adapt to a variety of everyday task

Harvard University researchers, partially funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation, have developed a soft robotic exosuit that customizes itself to the user for personalized and activity-specific assistance. This new class of wearable assistive technology applies mechanical help to the user's joints and muscles. The robotic exosuit can be calibrated to the user and adapt to a variety of real-world walking tasks in a matter of seconds. The researchers published their findings in Science Robotics.

The team of roboticists, movement scientists and clinicians captured ultrasound images of the calf muscles of participants as they performed a series of walking tasks. "From these pre-recorded images, we estimated the assistive force to be applied in parallel with the calf muscles to offset the additional work needed to perform during the push-off phase of the walking cycle," said Krithika Swaminathan, co-author of the study.

Co-author Robert Howe added that "our muscle-based approach enables relatively rapid generation of individualized assistance profiles that provide real benefit to the person walking.”

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