Comparative Effectiveness of Various Interface Designs and Control Methodologies for Myoelectric Prostheses
Abstract
The field of upper-extremity prostheses has advanced greatly in recent years. Pioneering investments made by government agencies and others over the past decade as well as advances in mechatronics have resulted in light, smaller, and less costly motors used in prosthetic products. While prosthetic hands and other terminal devices have the capability to do more, they are effectively restricted to operation of only 1 or 2 degrees of freedom due to the limitations of existing control technology. To help overcome these limitations, pattern recognition algorithms are becoming more popular; however, there is still the underlying need to capture robust, noise-free surface electromyography signals captured from the skin surface using electrodes. Several prosthetic socket interface designs exist and more are emerging, yet no evidence exists to suggest what may be the best design to produce the robust, noise-free signals required. The overall objective of this study is to evaluate and compare the short- and long-term effectiveness of existing and emerging interface designs and control methodologies on objective and subjective data outcomes. The study will be completed in two phases. The first phase of the project will be to train the various facility personnel who will be involved in the data collection. The first phase will last 6 months during which time the 17 individual facilities will be versed in the same study protocol and will begin recruitment procedures. The next phase will investigate the functional performance, self-reported responses, and fitting/fabrication/training differences between the various interface and control methodologies. These differences will be investigated for the next 2.5 years with the project completing at the end of year 3. Ultimately, these outcomes will guide evidence-based practices and will be shared with third-party payers in order to make the best technologies available to those most in need. In addition, the results may provide indications and contraindications based on the patient for various interface designs, information that is currently lacking. Further, as new technologies and approaches emerge, such as electrodes embedded directly into the muscle bellies, this outcomes research will provide a base and protocol for future comparisons. The data collection protocol for this study was purposely designed to be useful within a prosthetic facility due to the inexpensive or no cost materials, minimal requirement for training or certifications to administer the test, and flexibility to be conducted by the prosthetists or others. Achieving these criteria means that prosthetists can more easily adopt the procedures into everyday practice to justify and protect reimbursement. As these advanced technologies progress to lower extremity prostheses, the results of this study will help guide optimal clinical practices by understanding the salient factors impacting overall performance and satisfaction and how to properly address them. Improvements in protective armor and medical practices have increased combat injury survival rates. Thus, the number of Service personnel surviving with amputations has increased with current estimates exceeding 1200 surviving amputees, many of whom have sustained more than one limb amputation. While a primary goal of many military personnel having an amputation is to lead normal, productive lifestyles, an important secondary goal is the potential to return to active duty status and continue their military service. Critical to regaining normal lifestyles and even returning to active duty is to have a comfortable and functional socket interface that does not hinder the performance of the upper limb componentry. The results of this research will be critical to understanding the effectiveness of various control methodologies and how to best implement the data acquisition sensors within the prosthetic interface. These results will also extend beyond mil
Document Details
- Document Type
- DoD Grant Award
- Publication Date
- Oct 29, 2018
- Source ID
- W81XWH1710431
Entities
People
- James Colvin
Organizations
- United States Army
- Willow Wood (United States)