Design of a Robotic System for Diagnosis and Rehabilitation of Lower Limbs

TL;DR

This paper presents a comprehensive design guide for robotic systems used in lower limb diagnosis and rehabilitation, emphasizing human mobility, physiotherapy techniques, and device versatility, exemplified by a case study of a parallel robot.

Contribution

It introduces a structured design methodology for lower limb robotic devices, integrating diagnostic and rehabilitative functions with a case study of a novel parallel robot.

Findings

The proposed robot supports higher load capacities.

It effectively restricts movements to desired directions.

The design improves upon existing devices in versatility and functionality.

Abstract

Currently, lower limb robotic rehabilitation is widely developed, However, the devices used so far seem to not have a uniform criteria for their design, because, on the contrary, each developed mechanism is often presented as if it does not take into account the criteria used in previous designs. On the other hand, the diagnosis of lower limb from robotic devices has been little studied. This chapter presents a guide for the design of robotic devices in diagnosis of lower limbs, taking into account the mobility of the human leg and the techniques used by physiotherapists in the execution of exercises and the rehabilitation of rehabilitation and diagnosis tests, as well as the recommendations made by various authors, among other aspects. The proposed guide is illustrated through a case study based on a parallel robot RPU+3UPS able to make movements that are applied during the processes of rehabilitation and diagnosis. The proposal presents advantages over some existing devices such as its load capacity that can support, and also allows you to restrict the movement in directions required by the rehabilitation and the diagnosis movements.