A one-degree-of freedom ankle rehabilitation platform

Abstract

Abstract The ankle structure holds one of the most important role in the human biomechanics. Due to complexity of everyday activities this joint is the most prone to be injured part of the lower limb. For a complete recovery of the locomotor function, recovery exercises are mandatory. The existent ankle rehabilitation equipments allow only simple rehabilitation exercises, which cannot be used safely without the aid of a therapist. The introduction of robotic physical recovery systems represents a modern alternative to traditional recovery. Actuated devices are advantageous because they allow many types of exercises on same device, and also they accurate measure forces and angular motions. The purpose of this two paper is to propose a simple rehabilitation device, based on a one-degree-of-freedom mechanisms. Some structural, kinematic and designing aspects of this new ankle rehabilitation device are presented.