Augmenting knee biomechanics through programmable knitted ExoSkin orthoses

Abstract

A large subset of the population suffers injury or disease that causes knee pain and difficulty navigating day-to-day tasks. Off-the-shelf knee orthoses that are commonly used to treat these ailments overlook user-specific joint geometry and/or biomechanical needs. They can often be made with materials that lead to discomfort. We explore how the rich programmability of knitted fabrics can be harnessed to augment human biomechanics while promoting comfort. In this pursuit, we define \emph{ExoSkins}, a class of unpowered exoskeletons that are lightweight, comfortable, garment-like devices, and are designed based on user- and joint-specific needs. Although we foresee an expansive space for ExoSkin design (e.g., containing active materials, with sensing capabilities), in this study we focus on the interplay between knit geometry and programmable elasticity in passive orthoses as a means to augment the knee's rotational stiffness. We design geometrically-programmed ExoSkins, abbreviated \emph{G-PExos}, that capitalize on the anisotropies of four types of knitted fabric to provide high stiffness for joint torque without the need for rigid materials. Our findings indicate that G-PExos can achieve rotational stiffness of similar magnitude to off-the-shelf orthoses and can also be tuned to achieve a much broader range of rotational stiffness without sacrificing comfort to the user.