| Summary: | The diaphragm is a critical muscle for the respiratory system, responsible for up to
70% of the inspiration effort. Phrenic nerve trauma or neuromuscular disease can
generate severe diaphragm dysfunction that ultimately leads to respiratory failure.
The current treatment for patients with severe diaphragm dysfunction is permanent
airway tethering to mechanical ventilation, which greatly impacts patient’s quality
of life and autonomy by hindering activities like speech, swallowing, and mobility.
Soft robots are ideal to assist in complex biological functions like the contraction of
the diaphragm. Diaphragmatic mechanical assistance using implantable soft robots
has shown promising results in restoring respiratory function. However, the the soft
robotic system can be optimized to effectively assist the diaphragm. In this work, the
design and control of a fabric-shelled soft robotic pneumatic actuator are developed
to efficiently assist on the diaphragm motion and in the inspiratory effort. The soft
robotic system, developed in this work, is capable of significantly restore physiological
thoracic and abdominal pressurization levels in a respiratory simulator and demonstrates its potential as an alternative treatment for patients with severe diaphragm
dysfunction.
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