KTH has initiated a Student Project, with Master Students from the Mechatronics Division, named “Socket Sense HK” to construct a test appliance which will serve as advantageous artificial legs for the above-knee handicapped, with the expectation of the result of the project to be released by the end of the year 2020.
The proposed appliance will allow the realistic pressure readings of the body to be acquired for
various artificially created situations with the goal of creating an effective test appliance / artificial
leg with specific features like;
● An “Above-Knee Leg Stump” (AKLS) – part attached above the knee, similar to a rigid human body
the part which can be moved freely in three-dimensional space.
● A “Prosthetic Leg” which also can be freely moved three-dimensionally, also with the ability to move in
unison with the attached above-knee leg stump simulated surfaces – ensuring proper pressure is
applied from the above-knee leg stump to the prosthetic leg to enable proper coordination.
● Simulation to the artificial leg interface application to be operated on the computer, which will
be compatible with biomechanical modeling, simulation and analysis software like “OpenSim” and
technical computing software like “Matlab”. The project’s primary goal is to make walking possible using the suggested test appliance for an above the leg amputee.
The following potentials are also to be considered; the original appliance will be constructed in a
mechanism with the prospect of revamping it later into a product that enables jumping, running and even climbing with the use of the proposed artificial leg.
Another main objective is to construct this item customized for a specific handicapped patient’s
profile with the possibility to improvise it as the patient’s weight changes with time.