According to clinical studies, upper limb robotic suits are vital to reduce therapist fatigue and accelerate patient rehabilitation. Soft pneumatic actuators have drawn increasing attention for the development of wearable robots due to their low weight, flexibility, and high power-to-weight ratio. However, most of current actuators were designed for the flexion assistance of a specific joint, and that for joint extension requires further investigation. Furthermore, designing an actuator for diverse working scenarios remains a challenge. In this paper, we propose an all-fabric bi-directional actuator to assist the flexion and extension of the elbow, wrist, and fingers. A mathematical model is presented that predicts the deformation and guides the design of the proposed bi-directional actuator. To further validate the applicability and adaptability of the proposed actuator for different joints, we developed a 3-DOF soft robotic suit. Preliminary results show that the robotic suit can assist the motion of the elbow, wrist, and finger of the subject.

根据临床研究，上肢机器人套装对于减少治疗师疲劳和加速患者康复至关重要。软气动执行器由于其重量轻、灵活性和高功率重量比而在可穿戴机器人的开发中受到越来越多的关注。然而，目前大多数执行器都是为特定关节的屈曲辅助而设计的，而对于关节的伸展则需要进一步研究。此外，为不同的工作场景设计执行器仍然是一个挑战。在本文中，我们提出了一种全织物双向执行器来辅助肘部、手腕和手指的弯曲和伸展。提出了一个数学模型，可以预测变形并指导所提出的双向执行器的设计。为了进一步验证所提出的执行器对不同关节的适用性和适应性，我们开发了一种三自由度软机器人套装。初步结果表明，机器人套装可以辅助受试者的肘部、手腕和手指的运动。