An Exoskeletal Robot Manipulator for Lower Limbs Rehabilitation

There is an increasing trend in using robots for medical purposes. One specific area is the rehabilitation. There are some commercial exercise machines used for rehabilitation purposes. However, these machines have limited use because of their insufficient motion freedom. In addition, these types of machines are not actively controlled and therefore can not accomodate complicated exercises required during rehabilitation. In this study, three degree of freedom exoskeletal robot manipulator is proposed for lower limbs rehabilitation. The control of this robot manipulator is achieved by an intelligent controller. The robot operates in two stages; learning and therapy. It can make abduction-adduction and flexion-extension movements for hip, in addition to flexionextension movement for knee.