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Biomimetics
Special Issues
Bionic Technology—Robotic Exoskeletons and Prostheses: 2nd Edition
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Bionic Technology—Robotic Exoskeletons and Prostheses: 2nd Edition

A special issue of Biomimetics (ISSN 2313-7673). This special issue belongs to the section "Locomotion and Bioinspired Robotics".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 July 2024 | Viewed by 3324

Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Rafhael Milanezi de Andrade

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Universidade Federal do Espírito Santo, Vitória, ‎‎Brazil‎
Interests: mechanical engineering; biomechanics; motion analysis; bioengineering; biomechatronics; robotic rehabilitation; medical robotics, bionics; design and control of prostheses, orthoses, and exoskeletons; user-robot interaction; soft robot
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Bionic technology has been successfully used to enhance human capabilities and improve the quality of life of disabled people. Recent advances in robotics, mechatronics, data science, soft robotics, neuroscience, photonics, and electronics have paved the way for a new generation of robotic prostheses and exoskeletons. However, the development of wearable robots is highly challenging. These systems should be lightweight and powerful enough to replace or support the limbs and capable of safely interacting with the user physically and cognitively.

For this Special Issue, entitled “Bionic Technology—Robotic Exoskeletons and Prostheses”, we call for contributions from researchers in the field of biomechatronics that cover design and control, exoskeletons, prostheses, physical and cognitive user–robot interaction in wearable robots, and medical robots and bionic devices, among other relevant topics.

Prof. Dr. Rafhael Milanezi de Andrade
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Biomimetics is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2200 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • prosthetics and exoskeletons
  • rehabilitation robotics
  • physical human–robot interaction
  • cognitive human–robot interaction
  • wearable robotics
  • medical robots and systems
  • design and control
  • bioinspired robot learning
  • machine learning for robot control
  • soft robot

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

18 pages, 11889 KiB  
Article
Design and Assessment of Bird-Inspired 3D-Printed Models to Evaluate Grasp Mechanics
by Pavan Senthil, Om Vishanagra, John Sparkman, Peter Smith and Albert Manero
Biomimetics 2024, 9(4), 195; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/biomimetics9040195 - 26 Mar 2024
Viewed by 800
Abstract
Adapting grasp-specialized biomechanical structures into current research with 3D-printed prostheses may improve robotic dexterity in grasping a wider variety of objects. Claw variations across various bird species lend biomechanical advantages for grasping motions related to perching, climbing, and hunting. Designs inspired by bird [...] Read more.
Adapting grasp-specialized biomechanical structures into current research with 3D-printed prostheses may improve robotic dexterity in grasping a wider variety of objects. Claw variations across various bird species lend biomechanical advantages for grasping motions related to perching, climbing, and hunting. Designs inspired by bird claws provide improvements beyond a human-inspired structure for specific grasping applications to offer a solution for mitigating a cause of the high rejection rate for upper-limb prostheses. This research focuses on the design and manufacturing of two robotic test devices with different toe arrangements. The first, anisodactyl (three toes at the front, one at the back), is commonly found in birds of prey such as falcons and hawks. The second, zygodactyl (two toes at the front, two at the back), is commonly found in climbing birds such as woodpeckers and parrots. The evaluation methods for these models included a qualitative variable-object grasp assessment. The results highlighted design features that suggest an improved grasp: a small and central palm, curved distal digit components, and a symmetrical digit arrangement. A quantitative grip force test demonstrated that the single digit, the anisodactyl claw, and the zygodactyl claw designs support loads up to 64.3 N, 86.1 N, and 74.1 N, respectively. These loads exceed the minimum mechanical load capabilities for prosthetic devices. The developed designs offer insights into how biomimicry can be harnessed to optimize the grasping functionality of upper-limb prostheses. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bionic Technology—Robotic Exoskeletons and Prostheses: 2nd Edition)
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14 pages, 7814 KiB  
Article
Finger Prosthesis Driven by DEA Pairs as Agonist–Antagonist Artificial Muscles
by Alexandre B. S. da Silva, Gabriel E. P. Mendes, Eduardo S. Bragato, Guilherme L. Novelli, Marina Monjardim and Rafhael M. Andrade
Biomimetics 2024, 9(2), 110; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/biomimetics9020110 - 13 Feb 2024
Viewed by 1084
Abstract
Loss of an upper limb exerts a negative influence on an individual’s ability to perform their activities of daily living (ADLs), reducing quality of life and self-esteem. A prosthesis capable of performing basic ADLs functions has the capability of restoring independence and autonomy [...] Read more.
Loss of an upper limb exerts a negative influence on an individual’s ability to perform their activities of daily living (ADLs), reducing quality of life and self-esteem. A prosthesis capable of performing basic ADLs functions has the capability of restoring independence and autonomy to amputees. However, current technologies present in robotic prostheses are based on rigid actuators with several drawbacks, such as high weight and low compliance. Recent advances in robotics have allowed for the development of flexible actuators and artificial muscles to overcome the limitations of rigid actuators. Dielectric elastomer actuators (DEAs) consist of a thin elastomer membrane arranged between two compliant electrodes capable of changing dimensions when stimulated with an electrical potential difference. In this work, we present the design and testing of a finger prosthesis driven by two DEAs arranged as agonist–antagonist pairs as artificial muscles. The soft actuators are designed as fiber-constrained dielectric elastomers (FCDE), enabling displacement in just one direction as natural muscles. The finger prosthesis was designed and modeled to show bend movement using just one pair of DEAs and was made of PLA in an FDM 3D printer to be lightweight. The experimental results show great agreement with the proposed model and indicate that the proposed finger prosthesis is promising in overcoming the limitations of the current rigid based actuators. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bionic Technology—Robotic Exoskeletons and Prostheses: 2nd Edition)
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14 pages, 5153 KiB  
Article
A Semi-Autonomous Hierarchical Control Framework for Prosthetic Hands Inspired by Dual Streams of Human
by Xuanyi Zhou, Jianhua Zhang, Bangchu Yang, Xiaolong Ma, Hao Fu, Shibo Cai and Guanjun Bao
Biomimetics 2024, 9(1), 62; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/biomimetics9010062 - 22 Jan 2024
Viewed by 1056
Abstract
The routine use of prosthetic hands significantly enhances amputees’ daily lives, yet it often introduces cognitive load and reduces reaction speed. To address this issue, we introduce a wearable semi-autonomous hierarchical control framework tailored for amputees. Drawing inspiration from the visual processing stream [...] Read more.
The routine use of prosthetic hands significantly enhances amputees’ daily lives, yet it often introduces cognitive load and reduces reaction speed. To address this issue, we introduce a wearable semi-autonomous hierarchical control framework tailored for amputees. Drawing inspiration from the visual processing stream in humans, a fully autonomous bionic controller is integrated into the prosthetic hand control system to offload cognitive burden, complemented by a Human-in-the-Loop (HIL) control method. In the ventral-stream phase, the controller integrates multi-modal information from the user’s hand–eye coordination and biological instincts to analyze the user’s movement intention and manipulate primitive switches in the variable domain of view. Transitioning to the dorsal-stream phase, precise force control is attained through the HIL control strategy, combining feedback from the prosthetic hand’s sensors and the user’s electromyographic (EMG) signals. The effectiveness of the proposed interface is demonstrated by the experimental results. Our approach presents a more effective method of interaction between a robotic control system and the human. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bionic Technology—Robotic Exoskeletons and Prostheses: 2nd Edition)
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