Soft Robotic Arms for Fall Mitigation: Design, Control and Evaluation

Author

Param MalhotraFollow

Date of Award

8-2022

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Department

Mechanical Engineering

Committee Chair/Advisor

Dr. Ge Lv

Committee Member

Dr. Ian Walker

Committee Member

Dr. Garrett Pataky

Abstract

Most fall mitigation devices present a heavy system that avoid injuries to the user by preventing the impact of a fall. They are dependent on the user capability or on the probability that the user falls in the assumed manner the system was designed for. Often that is not the case, hence this project initiates a novel concept of using soft robotic arms to prevent falls from happening in the first place itself and save the user from any injuries. This thesis describes the prototype and development of a soft continuum robotic backpack system. The system can validate its use in fall mitigation over the front, backward, or sideways direction. The soft robotic arm is constructed with a bladder made of a soft rubber tubing , surrounded by a nylon braiding to allow the extension of the arm in the desired positions, sealed with custom made 3D printed nylon barbed connectors and plugs. The backpack is placed on a plastic mannequin and subjected to controlled falls in the directions mentioned above in a single plane. Results of the experiments with the prototype for each test scenario have been discussed.

Recommended Citation

Malhotra, Param, "Soft Robotic Arms for Fall Mitigation: Design, Control and Evaluation" (2022). All Theses. 3840.
https://open.clemson.edu/all_theses/3840