US 11,806,299 B2
Passive energy-storage exoskeleton for assisting elbow joint
Wenjie Chen, Hefei (CN); Xiantao Sun, Hefei (CN); Libo Zhou, Hefei (CN); Weihai Chen, Hefei (CN); Jun Tao, Hefei (CN); and Cungang Hu, Hefei (CN)
Assigned to Green Industry Innovation Research Institute, Anhui University
Filed by Green Industry Innovation Research Institute, Anhui University, Anhui (CN)
Filed on Feb. 24, 2021, as Appl. No. 17/183,507.
Claims priority of application No. 202011224245.4 (CN), filed on Nov. 5, 2020.
Prior Publication US 2022/0133577 A1, May 5, 2022
Int. Cl. A61H 1/02 (2006.01); H02J 15/00 (2006.01); F03G 5/06 (2006.01); F16H 37/12 (2006.01)
CPC A61H 1/0277 (2013.01) [F03G 5/06 (2013.01); H02J 15/007 (2020.01); A61H 2201/14 (2013.01); A61H 2201/1635 (2013.01); F16H 37/122 (2013.01)] 10 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A passive energy-storage exoskeleton for assisting elbow joint, comprising an upper arm unit, a lower arm unit, and an elbow joint unit located therebetween, the upper arm unit being rotatably connected with the lower arm unit; wherein
the elbow joint unit comprises an anti-gravity mechanism, a coil spring mechanism, and a lower-arm-unit self-locking mechanism;
the anti-gravity mechanism comprises a cardan's gear mechanism and an elastic part, the cardan's gear mechanism comprises a big ring gear fixed to the lower arm unit and a pinion hinged to the upper arm unit, and the pinion is meshed with the big ring gear; a first end of the elastic part is hinged to a position deviated from a center of the pinion, and a second end of the elastic part is connected to a lower end of the lower arm unit;
the coil spring mechanism comprises an energy-storage ratchet wheel, a spindle, a coil spring, a pawl B, and a pawl C; the energy-storage ratchet wheel is fixed to the lower arm unit, and the spindle is fixed to the upper arm unit; the coil spring is fixed to the spindle at an inner end of the coil spring, and is fixed to the energy-storage ratchet wheel at an outer end thereof; the pawl B is hinged to the upper arm unit, the pawl C is hinged to the lower arm unit, and the pawl B and the pawl C are provided with a switch B and a switch C respectively for adjusting respective engagements of the pawl B and the pawl C with the energy-storage ratchet wheel; and
the lower-arm-unit self-locking mechanism comprises a self-locking ratchet wheel and a pawl A, the self-locking ratchet wheel is fixed to the lower arm unit, the pawl A is hinged to the upper arm unit, the self-locking ratchet wheel comprises a ratchet teeth portion and a protruding edge portion which are alternately arranged at an outer edge of the self-locking ratchet wheel, and the pawl A is provided with a switch A for adjusting engagement between the pawl A and the ratchet teeth portion.