Braking device using counter electromotive force for the ergonomic assisted manipulation of large payloads

This paper presents a passive braking device designed to manually decelerate heavy payloads with very little effort. The device is based on the use of the counter electromotive force of a small brushed DC motor whose electrical connection is controlled using a simple handle. Three versions of the handle are proposed to activate the braking device. A dynamic model of the mechanical system is formulated and simulations are performed in order to assess the capabilities of the braking device. The simulation results are validated experimentally using a simple test bench. Finally, a full scale experimental set-up is built and results obtained with the set-up are given in order to demonstrate the effectiveness of the concept. •A passive braking device using motor back-emf for assisted payload deceleration.•A dynamic model of the system and simulation results to support the concept.•Experimental results on a full-scale prototype to demonstrate the effectiveness.