Engineering Commons^™

Design For Manufacturability And Assembly Of An Assistive Technician Creeper, Including Single Drive Control Of A Multi-Degree Of Freedom Kinematic Mechanism, Larry T. Wilde Jr.

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

In 2011, a team of engineering students at Utah State University designed and built an assistive technician creeper to assist persons with lower-extremity physical disabilities to work in low-clearance areas. In order to put this technology on the market, a complete product redesign was needed to address safety and functionality concerns. This thesis outlines the specific design needs, presents the detailed design approach, and summarizes the final creeper solution. The mechanisms of the initial prototype were modified to independently incline or recline the upper body, and raise or lower the seat surface with a single motor. This will be especially …

The Feasibility Of Using A Markerless Motion Capture Sensor (Leap MotionTm Controller) Forquantitative Motor Assessment Intended For A Clinical Setting, Clay Jordan Kincaid

Theses and Dissertations

Although upper limb motor impairments are common, the primary tools for assessing and tracking these impairments in a clinical setting are subjective, qualitative rating scales that lack resolution and repeatability. Markerless motion capture technology has the potential to greatly improve clinical assessment by providing quick, low-cost, and accurate tools to objectively quantify motor deficits. Here we lay some of the groundwork necessary to enable markerless motion capture systems to be used in clinical settings. First, we adapted five motor tests common in clinical assessments so they can be administered via markerless motion capture. We implemented these modified tests using a …

Functional Comparison Of Conventional Afos With The Dynamic Response Afo, Mitchell Ruble

Master's Theses (2009 -)

Ankle foot orthoses (AFOs) are commonly prescribed to provide stability and foot clearance for patients with weakened or injured musculature. The Dynamic Response AFO (DRAFO) was designed to improve proprioception at heel strike. The design includes a rigid outer shell with a cut out heel and a soft inner lining; it is typically aligned in plantarflexion and may incorporate external heel wedges. The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of the DRAFO design features and contrast its biomechanical function with that of conventional locked and articulating AFOs. The research hypotheses were: 1) DRAFO-assisted gait parameters (e.g. ankle …

Markerless Radiostereogammetry Of The Shoulder Joint In Humans: Comparisons Of Scapulohumeral Kinematics Between Individuals With Healthy And Supraspinatus-Impaired Shoulders, Ashley N. Hannon

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

The purpose of this collection of studies was to further develop the knowledge of shoulder motion in order to better understand joint function through direct measurement of 3D scapulohumeral joint kinematics using a technique of high accuracy. Markerless, bi-planar fluoroscopic radiostereometric analysis using a generic shoulder model was developed in this thesis, reducing the amount of radiation exposure to subjects. The studies compared kinematic data of the scapulohumeral joint in six degrees of freedom with a precise, in-vivo measuring technique. Data were collected on young and older healthy individuals, individuals with a torn supraspinatus and post-surgical intervention.

Although this generic …

A Study Of Kinematics And Kinetics In Time-Constrained Arm Movements, Oyindamola Owoeye

Theses

Several studies such as the equilibrium point hypothesis (EPH) purport that the motor signals that descend from the brain instead of encoding muscle torques, influence an existing relationship between muscle torque and body configuration.

In the present study, the possibility of torque depending explicitly on position was tested using a task in which subjects (N=5) moved a simulated weightless frictionless mass through a small (<8 degree) elbow extension in order to move a cursor on a screen to a target location. Each subject completed 720 trials. On ~10% of trials the simulated mass was increased unknown to the subject. The relationship between the cursor’s position and the torque applied to the system was held constant even when the simulated mass was increased. Thus, any change in torque produced was neither due the subjects’ perception of the mass nor due to their perception of the cursor. The time at which the subjects torque changed direction was seen to be significantly different (p<0.005) during trials which the mass changed. This change in torque is concluded to be position-dependent. However the possibility of this being a merely mechanical effect could not be ruled out by due to poor EMG collection.

A post-hoc analysis of different position-dependent motor control models, was done. Particularly, an exponential spring model, a linear spring model, and a linear spring with relative damping model were each tested to see how well …

Statistical Modeling To Investigate Anatomy And Function Of The Knee, Lowell Matthew Smoger

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The natural knee is a hinge joint with significant functional requirements during activities of daily living; as a result, acute and chronic injuries can occur. Pathologies are influenced by joint anatomy and may include patellar maltracking, cartilage degeneration (e.g. osteoarthritis), or acute injuries such as meniscal or ligamentous tears. Population variability makes broadly applicable conclusions about etiology of these conditions from small-scale investigations challenging. The work presented in this dissertation is a demonstration of statistical modeling approaches to evaluate population variability in anatomy of the knee and function of its tibiofemoral (TF) and patellofemoral (PF) joints. Three-dimensional (3D) computational models …