BipEx is an external exoskeleton system developed for patients who do not have or have lost, either partial or complete, control over their legs, this can even be people paralysed below the hip or people recovering from an accident. Instead of paying large sums of money for treatment, the patient can use this cheap and economical rehabilitation system which will help the patient recover faster. The bipex makes use of EMG(electromyography) to detect minute muscle twitches in the leg muscles and moves the respective joints accordingly, perfectly replicating walking motion. It achieves this using flow controlled pneumatics which are lighter and cheaper than traditional motors. Bipex also sends motion data to the patients physiatrist who can track muscle movements.
The project is basically a cheap exoskeleton which can be worn by patients for aiding walking and faster recovery after accidents. We believe that this exoskeleton will let those patients live a normal, independent life.
After we had painted the modules individually, we joined them along with the emg circuit to detect muscle twitching. We also combined the complete pneumatic system for testing it.
The 2nd prototype being tested by 1 of our members.
We designed an amplifier and filter circuit for EMG. EMG is electromyography. We used EMG to detect the twitching of muscles so that the exoskeleton's pneumatic pistons can be controlled on the basis of which joint the user wants to move.
We improved upon the previous prototype and came up with our version 2. The upgrades included proper joint coupling, a newer frame, painting, padding for more comfort.
This prototype also has a bag behind to house the pneumatic valves and bottles for storing. The prototype is now ready for testing
1st prototype testing. The initial prototype was made using basic materials and was tested directly with the air compressor connected. The prototyped worked and gave proof that many imprvements were possible
The 1st prototype consists of a hard coded motion of legs. Yet to test the EMG probes.