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

Journal: Nature communications
PMID:

Abstract

Most wearable robots such as exoskeletons and prostheses can operate with dexterity, while wearers do not perceive them as part of their bodies. In this perspective, we contend that integrating environmental, physiological, and physical information through multi-modal fusion, incorporating human-in-the-loop control, utilizing neuromuscular interface, employing flexible electronics, and acquiring and processing human-robot information with biomechatronic chips, should all be leveraged towards building the next generation of wearable robots. These technologies could improve the embodiment of wearable robots. With optimizations in mechanical structure and clinical training, the next generation of wearable robots should better facilitate human motor and sensory reconstruction and enhancement.

Authors

  • Haisheng Xia
  • Yuchong Zhang
    Robotics, Perception and Learning Lab, EECS at KTH Royal Institute of Technology Stockholm, 114 17, Stockholm, Sweden.
  • Nona Rajabi
    Robotics, Perception and Learning Lab, EECS at KTH Royal Institute of Technology Stockholm, 114 17, Stockholm, Sweden.
  • Farzaneh Taleb
    Robotics, Perception and Learning Lab, EECS at KTH Royal Institute of Technology Stockholm, 114 17, Stockholm, Sweden.
  • Qunting Yang
    Department of Automation, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230026, China.
  • Danica Kragic
    Robotics, Perception and Learning (RPL), EECS, Royal Institute for Technology (KTH), Stockholm, Sweden.
  • Zhijun Li