Abstract:To clarify the advantages of using soft robots in all aspects of life, the effective behaviour of the pneumatic muscle actuator (PMA) must be known. In this work, the performances of the PMA are explained and modelled with three formulas. The first formula describes the pulling force of the actuator based on the structure parameters; furthermore, the formula presented is the generalised contraction force for wholly-pneumatic muscle actuators. The second important model is the length formula, which is modified to our previous work to fit different actuator structures. Based on these two models, the stiffness of the actuator is formulated to illustrate its variability at different air pressure amounts. In addition, these formulas will make the selection of proper actuators for any robot arm structure easier using the knowledge gained from their performance. On the other hand, the desired behaviour of this type of actuator will be predefined and controlled.

This research aimed to identify the characteristics of strong midwifery leaders and explore how strong midwifery leadership may be enabled from the perspective of midwives and nurse-midwives globally. Design: In this appreciative inquiry, we collected qualitative and demographic data using a cross-sectional online survey between February and July 2022. Setting: Responses were received from many countries (n = 76), predominantly the United Kingdom (UK),

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Rehabilitation interventions play a vital role especially in most post-stroke care. Many rehabilitation robotic devices have been designed and developed to assist many individuals suffering from stroke or similar disabling illness and living with reduced mobility of the arms, hands and other joint. However, these devices remain unmanageable to use by the patients alone not only because they are cumbersome to use but also due to their weights, fix and non-portable characteristics, and so on. Here for elbow joint rehabilitation, we investigate and propose a novel exoskeleton soft robotic arm, which is wearable, lightweight and portable so that it would allow patients to perform repetitive motion therapy more often with a greater intensity in their homes and relevant to their daily activities. The proposed arm consists of various novel pneumatic Muscle Actuators (pMA) capable of bending in contrary to traditional pMA. Analysis, design, integration and characterisation of the proposed arm are presented and geometrical and numerical models are obtained. Various experiments revealed its behaviour and the relationship among pressure, length, force, and bending angle in different setups such as isotonic and isometric. The nonlinear, time varying and intractable dynamic of the constructed prototype demanded the design and development of an appropriate closed loop controller for adhering to target rehabilitation profiles. As proof of the concept a Model Reference Adaptive Control (MRAC) was designed and results were presented. By achieving design objectives, this study shows that the proposed portable exoskeleton has the ability to offer more effective intense rehabilitation therapies at home without the need to therapists and with a lower cost.