Ligament-based spine-segment mechanisms

Nowadays, a growing interest in spine-segment mechanisms for humanoid robots can be observed. The ones currently available are mostly inspired by an intervertebral joint but rarely use its structure and behaviour as input data. The aim of this study was to propose and verify an approach to spine-segment mechanisms synthesis, in which the mechanisms were obtained directly from a ligament system of the intervertebral joint through numerical optimization. The approach consists of two independent optimization procedures performed with genetic algorithm. The first one searches for the optimal structure, while the second estimates its geometrical and stiffness parameters. The mechanisms are rated by their ability to reproduce the static behaviour of the joint in selected aspects. Both procedures use the lumbar L4-L5 intervertebral joint reference data. The approach was tested in two numerical scenarios. It was possible to obtain a mechanism with 7 flexible linear legs that accurately emulated the elastostatic behaviour of the intervertebral joint under moment loads. The results prove that the proposed method is feasible and worth exploring. It may be employed in design of bioinspired joints for use in humanoid robots and can also serve as an initial step in the design of prosthetic and orthotic devices for a human spine.