title: A system for the delivery of programmable, adaptive stimulation intensity envelopes for drop foot correction applications.
abstract: We describe the design of an intelligent drop foot stimulator unit for use in conjunction with a commercial neuromuscular electrical nerve stimulation (NMES) unit, the NT2000. The developed micro-controller unit interfaces to a personal computer (PC) and a graphical user interface (GUI) allows the clinician to graphically specify the shape of the stimulation intensity envelope required for a subject undergoing drop foot correction. The developed unit is based on the ADuC812S micro-controller evaluation board from Analog Devices and uses two force sensitive resistor (FSR) based foot-switches to control application of stimulus. The unit has the ability to display to the clinician how the stimulus intensity envelope is being delivered during walking using a data capture capability. The developed system has a built-in algorithm to dynamically adjust the delivery of stimulus to reflect changes both within the gait cycle and from cycle to cycle. Thus, adaptive control of stimulus intensity is achieved.
authors.affiliation: Biomedical Electronics Laboratory, Department of Electronic and Computer Engineering, University of Limerick, National Technological Park, Limerick, Ireland.
authors.forename: P P
authors.initials: PP
authors.lastname: Breen
authors.forename: D T
authors.initials: DT
authors.lastname: O'Keeffe
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Conway
authors.forename: G M
authors.initials: GM
authors.lastname: Lyons
mesh_terms: D003196:Computer Graphics; D004599:Electric Stimulation Therapy / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods; D004867:Equipment Design; D019544:Equipment Failure Analysis; D020233:Gait Disorders, Neurologic / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D006801:Humans; D012815:Signal Processing, Computer-Assisted / Q000295:instrumentation*; D013813:Therapy, Computer-Assisted / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods; D014584:User-Computer Interface