Physiological analysis of sustainable human-power assistive robot collaboration

2021 Fiscal Year Annual Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 21K18108
• Research Institution: Kyushu University
• Principal Investigator: CHOI JEE・WON 九州大学, 芸術工学研究院, 学術研究員 (30883855)
• Project Period (FY): 2021-04-01 – 2022-03-31
• Keywords: 人間・機械協調

Outline of Annual Research Achievements

A collaboration between human and power assistance was simulated using an isokinetic movement machine, and activity trends of related muscle groups (biceps, triceps, and deltoid muscles) according to the mechanical conditions of elbow flexion/extension movement were examined using electromyography. In the preliminary experiment, participants were asked to hold a strong torque or a weak torque for a few seconds with isometric elbow flexion on the arm of the isokinetic machine, and at the moment this condition was matched, assistance was given in a fixed angular range. Preliminary experiment results showed that under the two target torque conditions, the activity of the biceps sharply decreased immediately after the assistance, but the activity of the triceps and deltoid muscle tended to increase for a certain time immediately after the assistance. In particular, the activity of these related muscles was remarkable in the condition of relatively weak target torque. Even if more samples are needed, the results so far might suggest that together with the well-known benefit of mechanical assistance on the agonist muscle, motor control for assisted low-load movement increases postural stability by activating and involving the other relevant muscle. Further research is needed to verify whether these mechanisms match in larger samples and any user groups. Furthermore, whether the involvement of the relevant muscles in the long term plays a role in sharing the load (positive effect) or causes the unnecessary load to the related muscles (negative effect) need to be investigated.