Stair climbing

About: Stair climbing is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 1610 publications have been published within this topic receiving 30504 citations.

FlipBot: A new field robotic platform for fast stair climbing

Abstract: Artificial structures such as stairs and bumps in roads are critical features that robotic platforms must overcome. Many robotic platforms have been developed for climbing stairs and for overcoming obstacles. However, the agility and maneuverability of the robotic platforms are not yet satisfactory. We propose a new field robot platform design that can climb various sizes of stairs as fast as human beings. The locomotion of the robotic platform is similar to the flipping (or tumbling) locomotion of humans, so we name the robot “FlipBot.” The main body is composed of a tread-wheel mechanism. A supporting leg performs flipping locomotion during stair climbing while the tread-wheel generates the driving force on flat surfaces. Design parameters are optimized using the Taguchi methodology for stable climbing on various sizes of stairs based on kinematic relations. The assembled robot prototype can climb three different sizes of stairs around 1 step per second, which is generally as fast as human walking. We expect the proposed robot platform to be applied to inspection and service robotic applications in indoor environments.

Effect of external marker sets on between-day reproducibility of knee kinematics and kinetics in stair climbing and level walking.

Abstract: The purpose of this study was to compare the between-day repeatability of the knee kinematics and kinetics in stair climbing and level walking among three marker sets: the Helen-Hays marker set with some markers on well-defined bony landmarks and some on not well-defined locations on soft tissues, the modified Helen-Hays marker set with a static calibration trial, and the UNC-CH marker set with all marker on well defined bony landmarks and a static calibration trial. Three-dimensional coordinates of markers in stair climbing and level walking were collected for six subjects on three days. Three-dimensional knee joint angles and resultant forces and moments were calculated. A between-day coefficient of multiple correlation was used to represent between-day repeatability of the knee joint angles, and resultant forces and moments during the stance phases of the stair climbing and level walking. Marker set had significant effect on the knee joint angles and resultant forces and moments (p < 0.02), except the knee axial force. The modified Helen-Hays marker set with a static calibration significantly improved the between-day repeatability for most of the knee angles and resultant forces and moments. The UNC-CH marker set with all markers on well-defined bony landmarks and a static calibration trial further improved the between-day repeatability of most the knee angles and resultant forces and moments.

Muscle coordination in healthy subjects during floor walking and stair climbing in robot assisted gait training

Abstract: The aim of gait rehabilitation is a restoration of an independent gait and improvement of daily life walking functions. Therefore the specific patterns, that are to be relearned, must be practiced to stimulate the learning process of the central nervous system (CNS). The Walking Simulator HapticWalker allows for the training of arbitrary gait trajectories of daily life. To evaluate the quality of the training a total of 9 subjects were investigated during free floor walking and stair climbing and during the same tasks in two different training modes on the HapticWalker: 1) with and 2) without vertical center of mass (CoM) motion. Electromyograms (EMG) of 8 gait relevant muscles were measured and muscle activation was compared for the various training modes. Besides the muscle activation as an indicator for the quality of rehabilitation training the study investigates if a cancellation of the vertical CoM movement by adaption of the footplate trajectory is feasible i.e. the muscle activation patterns for the two training modes on the HapticWalker agree. Results show no significant differences in activation timing between the training modes. This indicates the feasibility of using a passive patient suspension and emulate the vertical CoM motion by trajectory adaption of the footplates. The muscle activation timing during HapticWalker training shows important characteristics observed in physiological free walking though a few differences can still remain.

Kinematic analysis of stair climbing in rotating platform cruciate-retaining and posterior-stabilized mobile-bearing total knee arthroplasties.

Abstract: Introduction The aim of our study was to compare and contrast the effects of two types of mobile-bearing total knee arthroplasties (TKA), namely, the cruciate-retaining (CR) and posterior-stabilized (PS) TKAs, on clinical outcomes and in vivo kinematics during stair climbing.

Design of a Pneumatically Actuated Transfemoral Prosthesis

Abstract: This paper describes the design of an above-knee prosthesis with actively powered knee and ankle joints, both of which are actuated via pneumatic actuators. The prosthesis serves as a laboratory test-bed to validate the design and develop of control interfaces for future self-contained versions (i.e., with onboard hot-gas power and computing), and therefore includes a tether for both pneumatic power and control. The prototype prosthesis provides the full range of motion for both the knee and ankle joints while providing 100% of the knee torque required for fast cadence walking and stair climbing and 76% and 100%, respectively, of the ankle torque required for fast cadence walking and for stair climbing, based on the torques required by a healthy 75 kg subject. The device includes sensors to measure knee and ankle torque and position, in addition to a load cell that measures the interaction force and (sagittal and frontal planes) moments between the user and device.Copyright © 2006 by ASME