Abstract
This paper presents a review on design issues and solutions found in active lower limb prostheses. This review is based on a systematic literature search with a methodical search strategy. The search was carried out across four major technical databases and the retrieved records were screened for their relevance. A total of 21 different active prostheses, including 8 above-knee, 9 below-knee and 4 combined knee-ankle prostheses were identified. While an active prosthesis may help to restore the functional performance of an amputee, the requirements regarding the actuation unit as well as for the control system are high and the development becomes a challenging task. Regarding mechanical design and the actuation unit high force/torque delivery, high efficiency, low size and low weight are conflicting goals. The actuation principle and variable impedance actuators are discussed. The control system is paramount for a “natural functioning” of the prosthesis. The control system has to enable locomotion and should react to the amputee’s intent. For this, multi-level control approaches are reviewed.
Highlights
In contrast to existing reviews, this paper presents a systematic review on recent developments in active lower limb prosthetics based on a methodical search strategy
A supervisory high-level controller monitors the movements and inputs of the amputee and generates commands related to the amputee’s intent, such as the motion, which the prosthesis should perform [39]. These commands are forwarded to an underlying low-level controller, which is responsible for controlling the prosthesis
Regarding actuation principles, electromechanical ones are found in most prostheses due to the beneficial power and controllability properties of DC motors
Summary
In contrast to existing reviews, this paper presents a systematic review on recent developments in active lower limb prosthetics based on a methodical search strategy It contains a general overview of the identified prostheses and sheds light on different design approaches for the actuation unit as well as for the control system. Prostheses are commonly tested by a small number of amputees [18, 19, 28, 31, 36, 53, 59] or by means of custom-made attachments through which ablebodied subjects can test them [32, 40, 42, 52, 60,61,62,63] This aims at testing the general feasibility of different types of actuation and/or control strategies as well as iteratively evaluating new functions, such as additional modes of locomotion or switching between these modes. As first powered prostheses are currently commercialized by SpringActive [66], BionX Medical Technologies [67], and Freedom Innovations [68], those can be considered in such investigations
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