Novel design of a prosthetic foot using spring mechanism

Abstract

Mercer on Mission was the spark for construction of a prosthetic that provides added force during ambulation for amputee’s utilizing a prosthetic. This study attempts to design a novel prosthetic foot that has a spring mechanism in the ankle region of the device that allows for added force that is provided back to the patient as he or she ambulates. The design hopes to provide the patient operating on it a reasonable amount of range of motion with respect to the movements at the ankle including dorsiflexion, plantarflexion, inversion, and eversion. Proper testing of the prosthetic was done through Tekscan F-scan®, which is a plantar pressure analysis software. The analysis of the data showed that when the patient ambulated with the Spring Ankle Prosthetic (SAP), the force vs. percentage graph showed a reduced stance time, indicating that the springs within the ankle region of the prosthetic are functioning properly and helping aid the patient in ambulation.