Orthotics and Prosthetics Commons^™

Advancing Prosthetic Design Using Neural And Mechanical Dynamics, Kacie E. Hanna

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Limb loss poses a significant challenge to mobility and the performance of daily activities. Currently, nearly half of the amputees using powered prosthetics abandon their device due to inadequate limb coordination and movement control abilities. In the healthy system, passive and neural dynamics facilitate the synchronized activation of muscles necessary for coordinated movement. However, in the amputee, the system is disrupted. The goal of this research is to use neural and mechanical dynamics to inform the design of prosthetic devices in order to restore intuitive control and coordinated limb movement.

The first aim of this research is to investigate neural …

Collapsible Prosthetic Shower Leg, Amanuel Matias, Mahsa Ebrahim

Honors Thesis

The purpose of this capstone project is to build a collapsible prosthetic shower leg that can provide a transtibial amputee with reliable support while showering. Phil Tamoush, an 83-year old transtibial amputee, was the inspiration for this work. Phil’s constant travel for his arbitration work leaves him without the option to bring along his usual shower leg due to the additional space it takes up in his travel bag. There are currently no commercially available prosthetic shower legs that can collapse into a condensed unit, so this capstone project explores an unexplored field for which there is a significant need. …

Single Arm Recumbent Bicycle, Alexander Borsotti, Ryan Westermann, Sean Liston

Mechanical Engineering

The goal of this report is to outline and cover the scope of work for the Single Arm Recumbent Bicycle Senior Project. The report will give an introduction of the problem, a background of the existing research or products relating to our project, the objectives of our project, our project management plan, our final design, manufacturing, testing, our project management, and final recommendations for improving the final design. The team is being supported by the Quality of Life Program, a non-profit organization that works to improve the lives of those injured in duty while serving our nation.

Up until now, …

The Effect Of Coronal Prosthetic Alignment Changes On Socket Reaction Moments, Spatiotemporal Parameters, And Perception Of Alignment During Gait In Individuals With Transtibial Amputation, Hiroshi Hashimoto, Toshiki Kobayashi, Fan Gao, Masataka Kataoka, Kuniharu Okuda

Kinesiology and Health Promotion Faculty Publications

Introduction: The alignment of a prosthesis is clinically determined based on observations by clinicians and the subjective perception of amputees during gait. However, this process has been reported to be unreliable. Socket reaction moment has been reported to be significantly impacted by alignment changes, but the impact of these alignment changes on other gait parameters is unclear. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of coronal alignment changes of a transtibial prosthesis on socket reaction moment, spatiotemporal parameters, and perceptions of alignment during gait in amputees.

Methods: Nine individuals with transtibial amputation participated in this study. Socket …

The Impact Of Prosthetics On Amputee Quality Of Life, Courtney Tabor

Liberal Arts Capstones

After someone has a limb amputated, their lifestyle must be rearranged to accommodate for the loss of the limb. This can include adjusting to an inability to do tasks that used to come easily and a drastic reduction in mobility. They may now require assistance with caring for themselves. As a side effect, amputees often experience a significant level of depression and anxiety related to their situation. A selection of literature was analyzed for the physiological, psychological, and sociological effects of losing a limb, and then for the ways in which a prosthetic limb would alleviate some of these issues. …