Computational analysis of a theorised tendon-based trunk support device: Investigating safety, predictability, and mechanical requirements

Introduction: Movement disorders, such as Cerebral Palsy, prevent children from fully developing their motor coordination abilities reducing their quality of life. Trunk control is a core coordination competency but there is limited variety in sitting based therapies. This paper investigates a theorised trunk support device for children which...

The Design and Development of Project OVERTIME: Open-source Versatile Experimental Robot for Tendon-driven Instrument Manipulation and Evaluation

Steerable medical instruments are used to reach difficult locations in the body during minimally invasive surgery (MIS). Researching these instruments helps to further improve their performance and reduce their size making them even less invasive. However, developing new technology can be expensive and often complete custom test rigs are build...

Humanising robot fingers: Design, prototyping, and validation of an anthropomorphic robot finger with humanoid joint-ligament systems, tendon configurations, and supporting ligaments

Background: Current challenges in the design of anthropomorphic robot fingers is the implementing of anatomically accurate tendon-ligament structures, specifically for the collateral ligaments, volar plates, and the extensor apparatus. The development of robot fingers with these structures could aid in the further understanding of the functional...

Providing Foot Clearance during Stair Climbing with Tendon-Driven Systems: An Experimental Approach

Tendon-driven soft exosuits have gained much attention in recent years due to their ability to support people with mobility problems during daily life activities. A task that is particularly assisted by such robotic systems, due to its challenging nature, is stair climbing. However, assisting foot clearance during the swing phase of stair...

Mechanical Follow-the-Leader motion of a hyper-redundant surgical instrument: Proof-of-concept prototype and first tests

One of the most prominent drivers in the development of surgical procedures is the will to reduce their invasiveness, attested by minimally invasive surgery being the gold standards in many surgical procedures and natural orifices transluminal endoscopic surgery gaining acceptance. A logical next step in this pursuit is the introduction of...