scholarly journals The Effects of the Inertial Properties of Above-Knee Prostheses on Optimal Stiffness, Damping, and Engagement Parameters of Passive Prosthetic Knees

2016 ◽  
Vol 138 (12) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yashraj S. Narang ◽  
V. N. Murthy Arelekatti ◽  
Amos G. Winter

Our research aims to design low-cost, high-performance, passive prosthetic knees for developing countries. In this study, we determine optimal stiffness, damping, and engagement parameters for a low-cost, passive prosthetic knee that consists of simple mechanical elements and may enable users to walk with the normative kinematics of able-bodied humans. Knee joint power was analyzed to divide gait into energy-based phases and select mechanical components for each phase. The behavior of each component was described with a polynomial function, and the coefficients and polynomial order of each function were optimized to reproduce the knee moments required for normative kinematics of able-bodied humans. Sensitivity of coefficients to prosthesis mass was also investigated. The knee moments required for prosthesis users to walk with able-bodied normative kinematics were accurately reproduced with a mechanical system consisting of a linear spring, two constant-friction dampers, and three clutches (R2=0.90 for a typical prosthetic leg). Alterations in upper leg, lower leg, and foot mass had a large influence on optimal coefficients, changing damping coefficients by up to 180%. Critical results are reported through parametric illustrations that can be used by designers of prostheses to select optimal components for a prosthetic knee based on the inertial properties of the amputee and his or her prosthetic leg.

Author(s):  
V. N. Murthy Arelekatti ◽  
Nina T. Petelina ◽  
W. Brett Johnson ◽  
Amos G. Winter ◽  
Matthew J. Major

With over 30 million people worldwide in need of assistive devices, there is a great need for low-cost, high performance prosthetic technologies in the developing world. A majority of the hydraulic dampers used in prosthetic knee designs are highly specialized, expensive, require regular maintenance, and are incompatible for use with low-cost, single-axis prosthetic knees popular in developing countries. In this study, optimal damping coefficients were computed based on a theoretical analysis of gait, specifically during the transition from the stance to swing phase of human walking when a large damping torque is needed at the knee. A novel rotary hydraulic damper prototype was designed using high-viscosity silicone oil and a concentric meshing of fins for shearing the oil. The prototype was validated experimentally to provide the desired damping torque profile. For preliminary, user-centric validation of the prototype, a gait study on one above-knee amputee in India was conducted with four different damping magnitudes. Feedback from the subject validated the optimal damping torque magnitude predicted for minimizing gait deviations and for enabling able-bodied knee kinematics. The new rotary hydraulic damper design is novel, passive, and compatible with low-cost, single-axis knee prostheses.


Author(s):  
Molly A. Berringer ◽  
Paige J. Boehmcke ◽  
Jason Z. Fischman ◽  
Athena Y. Huang ◽  
Youngjun Joh ◽  
...  

There is a significant need for low-cost, high-performance prosthetic knee technology for transfemoral amputees in India. Replicating able-bodied gait in amputees is biomechanically necessary to reduce the metabolic cost, and it is equally important to mitigate the socio-economic discrimination faced by amputees in developing countries due to their conspicuous gait deviations. This paper improves upon a previous study of a fully passive knee mechanism, addressing the issues identified in its user testing in India. This paper presents the design, analysis and bench-level testing of the three major functional modules of the new prosthetic knee architecture: (i) a four-bar latch mechanism for achieving stability during stance phase of walking, (ii) an early stance flexion module designed by implementing a fully adjustable mechanism, and (iii) a hydraulic rotary damping system for achieving smooth and reliable swing-phase control.


2020 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 246-253
Author(s):  
Marcin Gackowski ◽  
Marcin Koba ◽  
Stefan Kruszewski

Background: Spectrophotometry and thin layer chromatography have been commonly applied in pharmaceutical analysis for many years due to low cost, simplicity and short time of execution. Moreover, the latest modifications including automation of those methods have made them very effective and easy to perform, therefore, the new UV- and derivative spectrophotometry as well as high performance thin layer chromatography UV-densitometric (HPTLC) methods for the routine estimation of amrinone and milrinone in pharmaceutical formulation have been developed and compared in this work since European Pharmacopoeia 9.0 has yet incorporated in an analytical monograph a method for quantification of those compounds. Methods: For the first method the best conditions for quantification were achieved by measuring the lengths between two extrema (peak-to-peak amplitudes) 252 and 277 nm in UV spectra of standard solutions of amrinone and a signal at 288 nm of the first derivative spectra of standard solutions of milrinone. The linearity between D252-277 signal and concentration of amironone and 1D288 signal of milrinone in the same range of 5.0-25.0 μg ml/ml in DMSO:methanol (1:3 v/v) solutions presents the square correlation coefficient (r2) of 0,9997 and 0.9991, respectively. The second method was founded on HPTLC on silica plates, 1,4-dioxane:hexane (100:1.5) as a mobile phase and densitometric scanning at 252 nm for amrinone and at 271 nm for milrinone. Results: The assays were linear over the concentration range of 0,25-5.0 μg per spot (r2=0,9959) and 0,25-10.0 μg per spot (r2=0,9970) for amrinone and milrinone, respectively. The mean recoveries percentage were 99.81 and 100,34 for amrinone as well as 99,58 and 99.46 for milrinone, obtained with spectrophotometry and HPTLC, respectively. Conclusion: The comparison between two elaborated methods leads to the conclusion that UV and derivative spectrophotometry is more precise and gives better recovery, and that is why it should be applied for routine estimation of amrinone and milrinone in bulk drug, pharmaceutical forms and for therapeutic monitoring of the drug.


2021 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert Christie

Abstract This paper presents an overview of the general chemical principles underlying the structures, synthesis and technical performance of azo pigments, the dominant chemical class of industrial organic pigments in the yellow, orange, and red shade areas, both numerically and in terms of tonnage manufactured. A description of the most significant historical features in this group of pigments is provided, starting from the discovery of the chemistry on which azo colorants are based by Griess in the mid-nineteenth century, through the commercial introduction of the most important classical azo pigments in the early twentieth century, including products known as the Hansa Yellows, β-naphthol reds, including metal salt pigments, and the diarylide yellows and oranges, to the development in the 1950s and 1960s of two classes of azo pigments that exhibit high performance, disazo condensation pigments and benzimidazolone-based azo pigments. A feature that complicates the description of the chemical structures of azo pigments is that they exist in the solid state as the ketohydrazone rather than the hydroxyazo form, in which they have been traditionally been illustrated. Numerous structural studies conducted over the years on an extensive range of azo pigments have demonstrated this feature. In this text, they are referred to throughout as azo (hydrazone) pigments. Since a common synthetic procedure is used in the manufacture of virtually all azo (hydrazone) pigments, this is discussed in some detail, including practical aspects. The procedure brings together two organic components as the fundamental starting materials, a diazo component and a coupling component. An important reason for the dominance of azo (hydrazone) pigments is that they are highly cost-effective. The syntheses generally involve low cost, commodity organic starting materials and are carried out in water as the reaction solvent, which offers obvious economic and environmental advantages. The versatility of the approach means that an immense number of products may be prepared, so that they have been adapted structurally to meet the requirements of many applications. On an industrial scale, the processes are straightforward, making use of simple, multi-purpose chemical plant. Azo pigments may be produced in virtually quantitative yields and the processes are carried out at or below ambient temperatures, thus presenting low energy requirements. Finally, provided that careful control of the reaction conditions is maintained, azo pigments may be prepared directly by an aqueous precipitation process that can optimise physical form, with control of particle size distribution, crystalline structure, and surface character. The applications of azo pigments are outlined, with more detail reserved for subsequent papers on individual products.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ning Liu ◽  
Qiaoqiao Zhang ◽  
Jingqi Guan

Seeking for low-cost and high-performance electrocatalysts for oxygen evolution reaction (OER) has drawn enormous research interest in the last few years. Reported herein is the topotactic construction of a binuclear...


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