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FEATURE
LINEAR MOTION
sponsored by Cutting edge researCh relies
on motion teChnology HepcoMotion’s GV3 linear guides are forming the basis of
an overhead gantry system being used at the University of Exeter for pioneering research into Parkinson’s
P
eople with Parkinson’s can experience ‘freezing of gait’, where it feels as though their
feet are stuck to the floor. Associated with balance problems and anxiety, these areas have been identified as a priority for research. This research utilises the world’s
largest force-sensing platform and a VSimulator to induce freezing in participants, and is used to evaluate the potential influence of weight-shift training on the ability to step from a freeze when a participant walks in a virtual reality environment. For this, a harness is used in conjunction with the overhead guidance system, following the participants’ movements and taking their weight if they stumble.
Needing a reliable and technically experienced company to provide the overhead gantry system, the team turned to HepcoMotion, having worked with them before on several linear applications. As a result, HepcoMotion was tasked with supplying a multi-axis system that
could cover the entire area of the articulated floor. While this needed to be free running, it also had to be rigid and strong enough to suspend a 150kg load.
BUILDING THE SOLUTION To meet the design requirements, three 5m GV3 linear guides, mounted to HepcoMotion’s MCS aluminium profiles, provide the basis for the XXY system. GV3 is HepcoMotion’s flagship linear guide
system.Here, two GV3 guides run parallel, with the third working as a cross beam, linking the two guides. On the central beam, the GV3 slide and carriage are mounted underneath the MCS, and this is where the harness is attached. The two parallel GV3 slides are 0.5m above the central beam, with each beam having a pair of carriages to give greater stability and to share the load. Bespoke fixing brackets, which connect the parallel beams to the central beam, are attached to these carriage plates. This combination provides the XY motion and unrestricted movement within the required 5 x 5m envelope, which was key to this application. By mounting the GV3 guides to a MCS profile of suitable cross-sectional area
it was possible to provide a solution which was rigid enough for this application, despite the 5m span, and could support the weight of a patient. With a load capacity of over 1000kg, GV3 can confidentially meet this requirement. The gantry is capable of speeds up to 8m/s, however this system is only required to operate at the walking pace of the person in the harness (around 1.5m/s). In addition, as the person in the harness moves, minimal drag on the cable
attached to them was essential. Here, V guide technology allows customers to back off the eccentric bearings to reduce the preload. With a minimal payload, the carriages can move more freely, and resistance is reduced.
FUTURE POTENTIAL Looking to the future, Bassitt added: “The potential for this research is huge. In addition to Parkinson’s patients, this research also has the potential to help many other medical disciplines such as those suffering from neuropathological, dementia, low mobility, or hip replacements, for example.”
HepcoMotion
www.HepcoMotion.com
3 DESIGN SOLUTIONS NOVEMBER 2022 8 T: 01884 257000 “This research will provide
unprecedented access to measurements of walking and freeze events that will undoubtedly progress our understanding of this common symptom of Parkinson’s,” explained James Bassitt, senior experimental officer at the University of Exeter.
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