Devices for improved mobility after spinal cord injury and stroke

Technology can improve the ability of people with disability to move in a variety of ways. Two devices are described here. The first is a novel foot drop stimulator that enables people, who drop or drag their foot during the swing phase of the walking cycle, to lift the foot through the use of functional electrical stimulation (FES). This stimulator uses a built-in tilt sensor to decide when stimulation through electrodes over the common peroneal nerve should be activated. The second device is for people who are more severely disabled and use a wheelchair for transportation. FES can be used to flex and extend the leg about the knee joint of the subject. This motion is then coupled to the wheel of the chair and permits propulsion of the wheelchair with the legs as well as with the arms. This wheelchair should have a number of benefits that are currently being studied with prototypes and with computer modeling.