0000000000161254
AUTHOR
Zlata Jelačić
Prosthetic design and prototype development
Abstract In recent years, there has been worldwide interest in improvement of the mobility of people with lower-limb amputations. Despite significant development of new technologies over the last decade, commercial below-knee and above-knee prostheses are still energetically passive devices. However, many locomotive functions, like walking up stairs and slopes, need significant power in the knee and ankle joints. The additional power for carrying out these previously mentioned activities needs to be achieved by means of external energy sources, which should be integral prosthetic components. This chapter presents preliminary investigations and development towards an active robotic prosthesi…
Hydraulic power and control system
Abstract In recent years, there has been worldwide interest in the improvement of the mobility of people with lower-limb amputation. Despite significant developments in new technologies during the last decade, commercial below-knee and above-knee prostheses are still energetically passive devices. However, many locomotive functions, like walking up stairs and slopes, need significant power in the knee and ankle joints. The additional power for doing previously mentioned activities needs to be achieved by means of external energy sources, which should be integral prosthetic components. In this chapter the design and development of the hydraulic power and control system are described.
Dynamics-based action recognition for motor intention prediction
Abstract Powered lower-limb prostheses presented in the previous chapter require a natural and easy-to-use interface for communicating amputee’s motor intention in order to select the appropriate motor program in a given context or simply to commute from an active (powered) to a passive mode of functioning. To be accepted by amputees, such an interface should (1) not put additional cognitive load on the end-user, (2) be reliable and (3) be minimally invasive. In this chapter we present one possible solution for achieving that goal: a robust method for autonomously detecting and recognizing motor intents from a wearable sensor network mounted on a sound leg. The sensor network provides a rea…
Experimental validation of the prosthetic leg
Abstract Studies of populations whose ability to perform voluntary movements is impaired due to natural reasons (e.g. aging), genetic anomaly (e.g. Down syndrome), trauma (e.g. spinal cord injury, amputation) or illness (e.g. Parkinson’s disease) frequently result in a basic question: are the observed motor patterns, which may be rather different from those seen in the general population, actually abnormal? In other words, should they be corrected? This question is important, not only for understanding the mechanisms of control over normal and disordered movements, but also for assessing the effectiveness of existing therapeutic approaches and providing focus for developing new therapies an…
Human motor system
Abstract This chapter deals with the general issues of motor control and coordination rather than with neurophysiological mechanisms that form the basis for natural, coordinated movements. It is useful that, before we consider the basics of motor behaviours and disorders, we introduce a general theoretical framework adequate to consider issues of control and coordination in biological systems. However, it is impossible to separate issues of control from issues of coordination during natural human movements. Hence, this chapter will also deal with coordination, exploring how individual effectors (such as muscles, joints and limbs) are made to act together in a task-specific way. Ultimately, …
Prosthetic modelling and simulation
Abstract Modelling of physical systems can be divided into two categories: physical and mathematical modelling. Physical modelling is a process in which we construct tangible scale models that look very much like the real system. In the past century, consider the animal models that have significantly influenced the development of disease treatment and artificial joints. However, scale models require a great deal of time and resources to develop and there are limits to what can be learned from them. Mathematical or behavioural modelling is a more abstract system used for studying a research question that does not necessarily lend itself to physical modelling. In these models, the system is s…
The challenges of prosthetic design and control
Abstract During the last decade, there has been significant interest – both in academia and in industry – in devising technologically advanced solutions for the improvement of mobility of people with a lower-limb amputation. This is partly due to the fact that the number of lower-limb amputees is constantly increasing. The majority of current prosthetic solutions are energetically passive devices, meaning that these devices can only react, while an active one can both act and react. Hence, they are unable to restore full mobility to lower-limb amputees. Many common everyday activities, such as walking up a slope or ascending and descending stairs, require the exertion of large forces and mo…