Conceptual design of an energy efficient transfemoral prosthesis

Ünal, Ramazan; Carloni, Raffaella; Hekman, Edsko E.G.; Koopman, Bart

doi:10.1109/iros.2010.5650987

Cited by 12 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 11 publications

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“…In addition catapult like pre-loading (swing) and releasing (during push-off) similar to the parallel spring in the PEA or passive ankle-knee couplings [15] can help to improve ankle push-off performance.…”

Section: F Further Conceptsmentioning

confidence: 99%

A comparison of parallel- and series elastic elements in an actuator for mimicking human ankle joint in walking and running

Grimmer¹,

Eslamy²,

Gliech

et al. 2012

2012 IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation

111

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Elastic elements in prosthetic devices can help to reduce peak power (PP) and energy requirements (ER) for the actuators. Calculations showed that it is impossible with current commercial motor technology to mimic human ankle behavior in detail for higher walking and running speeds with single motor solutions using a Serial Elastic Actuator (SEA). Concerning this result we checked the requirements of a parallel elastic actuator (PEA) and a combination of serial and parallel (SE+PEA) springs. We found that a PEA can reduce PP additionally in comparison to the SEA by pre-loading the spring in the flight phase. This reduces also peak torque. But this loading needs additional energy so that the ER increase in comparison to the SEA. The SE+PEA concept can further decrease PP. With that, the ER are less than the PEA but higher than for the SEA. The results show less benefit for the PEA and the SE+PEA when a constant stiffness and a fixed parallel spring slack length is used for both gaits and all speeds. All concepts show that mimicking human ankle joint behavior in running and walking at higher speeds is still challenging for single motor devices.

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Section: F Further Conceptsmentioning

confidence: 99%

A comparison of parallel- and series elastic elements in an actuator for mimicking human ankle joint in walking and running

Grimmer¹,

Eslamy²,

Gliech

et al. 2012

2012 IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation

111

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Moreover, in terms of walking energetics one of the main functions during walking are the ankle push-off generation and the contribution of the knee and hip joints to this generation. Therefore, the energy storage around the joints, as it takes place in normal walking, and the energetic coupling between these joints should be the key aspect in the design of an energy efficient transfemoral prosthesis [6], [22].…”

Section: Conceptual Design Of a Fully Passive Transfemoral Prosthesismentioning

confidence: 99%

Conceptual Design of a Fully Passive Transfemoral Prosthesis to Facilitate Energy-Efficient Gait

Ünal

Behrens

Carloni

et al. 2018

IEEE Trans. Neural Syst. Rehabil. Eng.

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In this paper, we present the working principle and conceptual design toward the realization of a fully-passive transfemoral prosthesis that mimics the energetics of the natural human gait. The fundamental property of the conceptual design consists of realizing an energetic coupling between the knee and ankle joints of the mechanism. Simulation results show that the power flow of the working principle is comparable with that in human gait and a considerable amount of energy is delivered to the ankle joint for the push-off generation. An initial prototype in half scale is realized to validate the working principle. The construction of the prototype is explained together with the test setup that has been built for the evaluation. Finally, experimental results of the prosthesis prototype during walking on a treadmill show the validity of the working principle.

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“…Double joint actuation has already been successfully applied in several passive transfemoral prostheses, where the power used to propel the ankle into push-off is obtained by harvesting energy that would normally be dissipated [111,112]. The prosthesis of Unal et al [112,113], is partly powered by mimicking the Achilles tendon at the ankle: storing energy, that is normally dissipated by the ankle muscles, in a spring and using it to power ankle push-off. Apart from this, a biarticular element allows for double joint actuation during the pre-swing phase, as described above.…”

Section: Double Joint Actuationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Biarticular elements as a contributor to energy efficiency: biomechanical review and application in bio-inspired robotics

et al. 2017

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Despite the increased interest in exoskeleton research in the last decades, not much progress has been made on the successful reduction of user effort. In humans, biarticular elements have been identified as one of the reasons for the energy economy of locomotion. This document gives an extensive literature overview concerning the function of biarticular muscles in human beings. The exact role of these muscles in the efficiency of human locomotion is reduced to three elementary functions: energy transfer towards distal joints, efficient control of output force direction and double joint actuation. This information is used to give an insight in the application of biarticular elements in bio-inspired robotics, i.e. bipedal robots, exoskeletons, robotic manipulators and prostheses. Additionally, an attempt is made to find an answer on the question whether the biarticular property leads to a unique contribution to energy efficiency of locomotion, unachievable by mono-articular alternatives. This knowledge is then further utilised to indicate how biarticular actuation of exoskeletons can contribute to an increased performance in reducing user effort.

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Conceptual design of an energy efficient transfemoral prosthesis

Cited by 12 publications

References 11 publications

A comparison of parallel- and series elastic elements in an actuator for mimicking human ankle joint in walking and running

A comparison of parallel- and series elastic elements in an actuator for mimicking human ankle joint in walking and running

Conceptual Design of a Fully Passive Transfemoral Prosthesis to Facilitate Energy-Efficient Gait

Biarticular elements as a contributor to energy efficiency: biomechanical review and application in bio-inspired robotics

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