TY - JOUR
T1 - Design of a cosmetic glove stiffness compensation mechanism for toddler-sized hand prostheses
AU - Bos, R.A.
AU - Plettenburg, Dick H.
PY - 2017
Y1 - 2017
N2 - The addition of a cosmetic glove to an upper limb prosthesis has a distinct effect on the cosmetic value, but its viscoelastic behaviour adds a substantial amount of stiffness and hysteresis to the system. As a result, the overall usability of the prosthesis is degraded. A novel negative stiffness element is designed to compensate for the cosmetic glove’s stiffness. A combination of linear helical springs and the concept of rolling link mechanisms has resulted in a Rolling Stiffness Compensation Mechanism (RSCM). Results show that the RSCM is capable of exerting a progressive negative stiffness characteristic and can be built small enough to fit inside a 33 mm diameter wrist. Using the RSCM, an otherwise voluntary opening toddler-sized prosthesis is converted into a voluntary closing device, reducing maximum operation forces down to 40 N with a combined efficiency of 52%. Further adjustments to the design are possible to further improve the efficiency of the mechanism. Moreover, changes in geometric relations of the mechanism offers possibilities for a wide range of prostheses and other applications.
AB - The addition of a cosmetic glove to an upper limb prosthesis has a distinct effect on the cosmetic value, but its viscoelastic behaviour adds a substantial amount of stiffness and hysteresis to the system. As a result, the overall usability of the prosthesis is degraded. A novel negative stiffness element is designed to compensate for the cosmetic glove’s stiffness. A combination of linear helical springs and the concept of rolling link mechanisms has resulted in a Rolling Stiffness Compensation Mechanism (RSCM). Results show that the RSCM is capable of exerting a progressive negative stiffness characteristic and can be built small enough to fit inside a 33 mm diameter wrist. Using the RSCM, an otherwise voluntary opening toddler-sized prosthesis is converted into a voluntary closing device, reducing maximum operation forces down to 40 N with a combined efficiency of 52%. Further adjustments to the design are possible to further improve the efficiency of the mechanism. Moreover, changes in geometric relations of the mechanism offers possibilities for a wide range of prostheses and other applications.
KW - OA-Fund TU Delft
UR - http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:58eba0cf-d637-4c5a-86fa-78f3d1e3c543
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85027171709&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1371/journal.pone.0183233
DO - 10.1371/journal.pone.0183233
M3 - Article
SN - 1932-6203
VL - 12
JO - PLoS ONE
JF - PLoS ONE
IS - 8
M1 - e0183233
ER -