This paper presents the numerical simulation of a 3D mechanical design of an ankle exoskeleton for elderly users. The ankle is one of the most injury-prone joints due to its irregular - sphere shape and elderly people are more prone to this damage (approximately 80% of patients with a history of ankle sprain undergo surgery for post-traumatic ankle osteoarthritis [1]). This problem generates a decrease in muscular resistance on the legs, loss of motor skills, loss of mobile autonomy, etc. The simulation of this exoskeleton is intended to reduce these problems by means of this low-cost mechanism, since similar options exist, but they are not within the economic reach of all. For this reason, anatomical measurements of an elderly user were taken to obtain an ergonomic and easy-to-use mechanical design. Biomechanical calculations were also performed on the ankle to define its displacement a...

This article presents the numerical simulation and design of an ankle exoskeleton oriented to elderly users. For the design, anatomical measurements were taken from a user of this age group to obtain an ergonomic, resistant, and exceptionally reliable mechanical structure. In addition, the design was validated to support a “weight range” of users between 50 and 80 kg in order to evaluate the reaction of the mechanism within the range of loads generated in relation to the first principal stress, the safety coefficient, the Von Mises stress, and principal deformations, for which the 3D CAD software Autodesk Inventor and theoretical correlations were used to calculate the displacement and rotation angles of the ankle in the structure. Likewise, two types of materials were evaluated: ABS (acrylonitrile butadiene styrene) and a polymer reinforced with carbon fiber. Finally, the designed p...