Wearable Assistive Robotics: A Perspective on Current Challenges and Future Trends

Abstract

Wearable assistive robotics is an emerging technology with the potential to assist humans with sensorimotor impairments to perform daily activities. This assistance enables individuals to be physically and socially active, perform activities independently, and recover quality of life. These benefits to society have motivated the study of several robotic approaches, developing systems ranging from rigid to soft robots with single and multimodal sensing, heuristics and machine learning methods, and from manual to autonomous control for assistance of the upper and lower limbs. This type of wearable robotic technology, being in direct contact and interaction with the body, needs to comply with a variety of requirements to make the system and assistance efficient, safe and usable on a daily basis by the individual. This paper presents a brief review of the progress achieved in recent years, the current challenges and trends for the design and deployment of wearable assistive robotics including the clinical and user need, material and sensing technology, machine learning methods for perception and control, adaptability and acceptability, datasets and standards, and translation from lab to the real world.

Shaping high-performance wearable robots for human motor and sensory reconstruction and enhancement

“…A lot of wearable robots mainly focus on the control of the robots while omitting sensory feedback to the human, lacking bi-directional interaction between the human and robot 10 . Additionally, artifacts caused by skin movement between the wearable robot and the human body can significantly affect the control accuracy, leading to a significant drop in usage period and eventual abandonment 11 . Indeed, skin stretching during movement makes it challenging to maintain a complete connection between the human and the robot.…”

Energy-to-Mass Ratio—A Novel Selection Criterion of Pneumatic Motors Used for the Actuation of Wearable Assistive Devices

“…They were developed as augmentative devices to improve the bearer's physical performance or as orthotic devices for the rehabilitation of walking or locomotory assistance. Compared to stationary systems, powered exoskeletons must be compact, lightweight, safe, reliable, intelligent and portable, and can be potentially used at home [3,4].…”

Exercise with Wearable Hip-assist Robot Improved Physical Function and Walking Efficiency in Older Adults

“…Wearable assistive robotics has emerged as a promising technology to supplement or replace motor functions and retrain people recovering from an injury or living with reduced mobility as a result of aging so they can function by themselves 18 . Robotic assistance has the potential to assist locomotion in a variety of areas, including recreation, clinical rehabilitation and assistance, and occupations with demanding tasks 19,20 . The use of wearable assistive devices has become one of the most promising ways to assist individuals with gait disorders 13,21,22 .…”