Designing Kresling Origami for Personalised Wrist Orthosis

TL;DR

This paper introduces a customizable wrist orthosis inspired by Kresling origami, capable of multiple motions, adaptable to individual shapes, and validated through experimental workspace analysis for rehabilitation applications.

Contribution

It presents a novel, origami-inspired design for personalized wrist orthoses with multiple motion modes and detachable actuation, enhancing customization and functionality.

Findings

Maximum bending angles range from 18.81° to 32.63°

Orthosis can perform complex motions like dart-throwing and circumduction

Design is adaptable to individual shape parameters

Abstract

The wrist plays a pivotal role in facilitating motion dexterity and hand functions. Wrist orthoses, from passive braces to active exoskeletons, provide an effective solution for the assistance and rehabilitation of motor abilities. However, the type of motions facilitated by currently available orthoses is limited, with little emphasis on personalised design. To address these gaps, this paper proposes a novel wrist orthosis design inspired by the Kresling origami. The design can be adapted to accommodate various individual shape parameters, which benefits from the topological variations and intrinsic compliance of origami. Heat-sealable fabrics are used to replicate the non-rigid nature of the Kresling origami. The orthosis is capable of six distinct motion modes with a detachable tendon-based actuation system. Experimental characterisation of the workspace has been conducted by activating tendons individually. The maximum bending angle in each direction ranges from 18.81{\deg} to 32.63{\deg}. When tendons are pulled in combination, the maximum bending angles in the dorsal, palmar, radial, and ulnar directions are 31.66{\deg}, 30.38{\deg}, 27.14{\deg}, and 14.92{\deg}, respectively. The capability to generate complex motions such as the dart-throwing motion and circumduction has also been experimentally validated. The work presents a promising foundation for the development of personalised wrist orthoses for training and rehabilitation.