Shape Memory Alloy Actuated Active Ankle Foot Orthosis

形状记忆合金驱动主动踝足矫形器

• 批准号: 0731087
• 负责人: Mohammad Elahinia
• 金额: $ 24.75万
• 依托单位: University of Toledo
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2008
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2008-01-01 至 2011-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0731087&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Shape; Memory; Alloy; Actuated; Active

0731087ElahiniaThis proposal is for the development and evaluation of an active ankle foot orthosis (AAFO). This device will fill the gap in the existing research aimed at helping individuals with conditions causing foot drop as well as in other related rehabilitation activities. Individuals with foot drop are unable to dorsiflex their foot because of impaired muscle activity around the ankle. The major causes of foot drop are trauma to the involved nerves, stroke, cerebral palsy and multiple sclerosis. There are two common complications from foot drop. First, there is no control of the foot after heel strike, so that it slaps the ground on every step. The second complication is the inability to clear the toe during swing. This causes the person to drag their toe on the ground throughout the swing or compensate through alterations in the normal biomechanics of ambulation. An AAFO is a wearable device that is intended to help normalize the gait of a person with foot drop. The device provides a controlled force to compensate for muscle deficiencies that cause the condition. The current AAFO?s use bulky actuators such as DC motors and pneumatic actuators, which do not allow for practical and comfortable walking. In this research shape memory alloys (SMAs) will be used to provide the actuation force of the AAFO. To this end, analytical and experimental studies will be performed to develop a device that is lightweight and comfortable for walking. The main benefit of the SMAs for this application is biocompatibility and their very high force to mass ratio: an SMA wire can lift close to 80,000 times of its own weight. Furthermore, SMA actuators do not need moving parts, which greatly reduce the complexity of the design.

0731087Elahinia 该提案用于开发和评估主动踝足矫形器 (AAFO)。该设备将填补现有研究的空白，旨在帮助患有足下垂疾病的个人以及其他相关的康复活动。 由于脚踝周围的肌肉活动受损，足下垂的人无法背屈足部。足下垂的主要原因是相关神经损伤、中风、脑瘫和多发性硬化症。足下垂有两种常见的并发症。首先，脚跟着地后脚无法控制，每走一步都会拍打地面。第二个并发症是在挥杆过程中无法清理脚趾。这会导致人在整个挥杆过程中将脚趾拖在地面上，或者通过改变正常的行走生物力学进行补偿。 AAFO 是一种可穿戴设备，旨在帮助足下垂患者恢复正常步态。该装置提供受控的力量来补偿导致这种情况的肌肉缺陷。目前的 AAFO 使用直流电机和气动执行器等笨重的执行器，无法实现实用且舒适的行走。在本研究中，形状记忆合金 (SMA) 将用于提供 AAFO 的驱动力。为此，将进行分析和实验研究，以开发一种轻便且步行舒适的设备。 SMA 对于该应用的主要优点是生物相容性及其极高的力质量比：SMA 线可以举起近 80,000 倍自身重量的物体。此外，SMA执行器不需要移动部件，这大大降低了设计的复杂性。