Kinematic compatibility is crucial in wearable walking assistive devices. We aim to design wearable walking assistive devices with high degree of kinematic compatibility by focusing on tensegrity structure, regarded as the basis of the body structure. In this paper, we examined the factors required to design the tensegrity knee joint for wearable walking assistive devices. To support the mobility and stability of the knee joint, we designed a tensegrity joint with a mechanism to change its rigidity by changing the moment of inertia. Experimental results suggest that the mechanism can reduce the structure's rigidity by up to one-third.
Science Journal 