%0 Journal Article
%T Optimal Control and Biomechanics of Ambulation with Spring-Loaded Crunches
%A Guangyu Liu
%A Yanxin Zhang
%A Sheng-Quan Xie
%A Anke Xue
%J International Journal of Advanced Robotic Systems
%D 2011
%I InTech
%X Standard underarm or forearm crutches have some drawbacks induced by their rigid legs. SpingŠ\ loaded crutches can reduce the impact effect. However, whether or not they also improve propulsion is an open problem. We formulate a problem of the optimal performance of springŠ\loaded crutches and propose a numerical approach to solve the problem. Then, the numerical optimal values are incorporated to the innovative design of a pair of springŠ\loaded crutches. To evaluate the crutches  performance, we have conducted standard biomechanical experiments for a number of male subjects under two conditions: walking with standard crutches and with springŠ\loaded crutches. Three dimensional kinematic data and ground reaction force were recorded and analysed. It was observed that optimized springŠ\loaded crutches can efficiently propel the crutch walkers, which conforms to the theory.
%K Optimal Control
%K Boundary Value Problem
%K Biomechanics
%K Crunch Ambulation
%U http://www.intechopen.com/articles/show/title/optimal_control_and_biomechanics_of_ambulation_with_spring_loaded_crunches