Mechanical behaviour of human leg skeletal muscles for gait studies

Abstract

This paper presents the mechanical behaviour with an explicit strain-energy function associated with the active response of skeletal muscle tissue during gait cycle. A strain energy density function or stored energy density function is a scalar valued function that relates the strain energy density of a material to the deformation gradient. It shows both the Active and Passive length-tension properties of skeletal muscle. The muscle is assumed to be hyper-elastic material. A hyper-elastic material is an ideally elastic material for which the stress-strain relationship derives from a strain energy density function. In the present model, the formulation is done in longitudinal extension, transverse extension, longitudinal shear and transverse shear case after application of load (body weight) for the upper leg and lower leg muscle. The experimental data is taken for the Gastrocnemius muscle in upper leg and Tibilias Anterior in lower leg. The proposed approach shows the mechanical behaviour of the human skeletal muscle system for a gait cycle. © 2010 International Federation for Medical and Biological Engineering.