Multi-Robot Cyber-Physical System for Assisting Young Developmentally-Delayed Children in Learning to Walk

This project is a modular multi-robot cyber-physical system (CPS) for assisting young developmentally-delayed children learn to walk. The challenges of assisting young developmentally-delayed children learn to walk are 1) stabilizing medio-lateral body movement; and 2) developing gait that exploits potential and kinetic energy exchange. Typically, adults help children learn to walk by providing support that enables them to safely explore the environment. In order to capture the adaptability of the adult responding to the child’s learning, our CPS consists of 1) a wearable robot module with embedded sensor and actuator which applies assistive torques to the hip joints to assist limb movement; and 2) a scaffold module which applies forces to the pelvis via cables to modulate and stabilize center of mass movement. These modules can be used individually or in combination to tailor assistance to the specific needs of a developmentally-delayed child.