Enhancing stance phase propulsion during level walking by combining FES with a powered exoskeleton for persons with paraplegia.
This paper describes the design and implementation of a cooperative controller that combines functional electrical stimulation (FES) with a powered lower limb exoskeleton to provide enhanced hip extension during the stance phase of walking in persons with paraplegia. The controller utilizes two sources of actuation: the electric motors of the powered exoskeleton and the user's machine (FSM), a set of FES. It consists of a finite-state machine (FSM), a set of proportional-derivative (PD) controllers for the exoskeleton and a cycle-to-cycle adaptive controller for muscle stimulation. Level ground walking is conducted on a single subject with complete T10 paraplegia. Results show a 34% reduction in electrical power requirements at the hip joints during the stance phase of the gait cycle with the cooperative controller compared to using electric motors alone.
Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235, USA. kevin.h.ha@vanderbilt.edu
Kevin H
KH
Ha
Hugo A
HA
Quintero
Ryan J
RJ
Farris
Michael
M
Goldfarb
D000328:Adult; D004558:Electric Stimulation; D005684:Gait; D006615:Hip; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010264:Paraplegia; D016059:Range of Motion, Articular; D012656:Self-Help Devices; D016138:Walking