Prediction of Smooth Gait Transitioning for Active Lower Limb Prosthetics.

Abstract

Amputation is the major cause of gait impairment in our society and is due to several factors and conditions such as war injuries or diabetes lower limb complication, often resulting in a gait impairment. Active prosthetics have been considered to remedy this mobility loss. These devices have the potential to enhance significantly the quality of life of patients. One major challenge resides in the generation of smooth trajectories, especially during gait transitioning for the active joints of the powered devices. Here we propose a smooth trajectory predictor for above-knee prosthetics, where the motion of the hip joints is translated into knee and ankle joint trajectories. We consider a locomotion task that includes overground walking and stairs ascent. Successful prediction is achieved for both knee and ankle joint angular positions.