Contact Person: Dipl.-Ges.Wirt (FH) Niels Will

The Locomotion Lab provides a dynamic test environment for various robotic application scenarios. The key element of the lab will be the RYSEN 3D body weight support system by Motek for gait and balance support (finalization at the end of 2022). 

Application focus

One research focus at DFKI RIC is the development of legged robots, which can be evaluated and optimized in application-oriented tests in the Locomotion Lab:  An application example is the development of assistance systems for people with neuromotor diseases such as stroke. Amongst others, systems like actuated orthoses and exoskeletons will be developed to help people with restricted mobility to walk or relearn to walk. To bring such developments to a high level, a 3D body weight support system will be used in the lab, which protects the test subjects and the system from falls without restricting the subjects' movements.
The humanoid Robot RH5 was developed as an assistance robot to act in an environment designed for humans. In the future, it will be possible to test such robotic systems in a risk-minimized manner in complex application situations, e.g. in interaction with humans as well as for locomotion and manipulation task in a real environment, using the 3D body weight support system in the Locomotion Lab.
In summary, the Locomotion Lab serves to develop and test technologies for rehabilitation and assistance in medical or daily life applications, but also – in conjunction with the Underactuated Lab – provides an appropriate test infrastructure for humanoid and legged robots.

Infrastructure

The Locomotion Lab is a dynamic test environment with 108 m²and a room height of over 6 m, providing optimal conditions for testing legged robotic systems. Part of the lab is primarily available for applications with the 3D body weight support system, while other areas can be used for temporary test setups, such as tests with legged robots or rehabilitation studies.
The Motek RYSEN 3D body weight support system offers the following specifications:
•    flexible workspace with a large application-relevant movement space between two ceiling rails for unrestricted movements for use with exoskeletons and legged robots,
•    horizontal support when standing up and walking (up and down stairs) to recreate everyday situations,
•    Class IIa certification (EU) for safe use on humans,
•    enabling smooth movements in the main walking direction of the room during gait initiation.

(Illustrations and further technical specifications of the system as well as equipment and infrastructure will follow after final completion and commissioning of the locomotion lab).