PERSONIFY is a project founded by the Ossur-Ottobock joint trust fund, which started in 2024.
Abstract: During locomotion, the intact human ankle joint is dominant in propulsion and important in balance control and adaptation to different terrains. Volitional control of a powered ankle prosthesis by residual muscle activity has the potential to restore this function after amputation. In the H2020 project Simbionics we developed a human-machine interface (HMI) that uses an EMG-driven personalised neuromusculoskeletal (NMS) model of the intact limb to virtually recreate the neuromechanics of the missing limb and then reproduce its state by the prosthesis (Empower). To close the sensorimotor loop, the muscle states are fed back to the user by artificial sensory stimulation.
From the R&D that will be achieved in Simbionics, we aim to advance the TRL from 3 to 5 in this project. Hardware and software changes will be made to allow for experiments outside the lab. To calibrate NMS models, sEMG of residual muscles will be collected from 25-30 unilateral transtibial amputees using their passive daily used prosthesis. We will include 5-10 amputees to compare different versions of the developed HMI against continuous proportional myoelectric control. Using the best performing method, we will then longitudinally evaluate user-prosthesis interaction in 10-20 amputees in the lab and outside the lab. In all experimental studies both socket and bone-anchored prosthesis users will be included.
Consortium
University of Twente (NL):
- Prof. Herman van der Kooij
- Prof. Massimo Sartori
- Dr. Matej Tomc
Roessingh Rehabilitaiton Center (NL):
- Dr Erik Prinsen
RadboudUmc (NL):
- Dr. Ruud Leijendekkers
Aalborg University (DK):
- Prof.dr. Stranhinja Dosen