Kabushiki Kaisha Kobe Seiko Sho

Hyogo Prefectual Social Welfare Corporation

Yoshihisa Araki

Shiro Horiguchi

Shigeru Yuki

Akio Nakagawa

Kunio Amemori

Ichiro Kitayama

Seishi Sawamura

Hidehisa Oku

Sakuya Nakajima

Mikio Yuki

Toshihiro Hamada

The present invention is intended to provide a teaching playback swing-phase-controlled above knee prosthesis which enables an external data setting to set the mechanism of the teaching playback swing-phase-controlled above knee prosthesis for conditions that enable the mechanism to operate for motions according to a walking speed. The teaching playback swing-phase-controlled above knee prosthesis includes a structural body having a thigh frame and a leg frame pivotally joined to the thigh frame for swing motion relative to the thigh frame, an air cylinder having a cylinder body, a piston axially slidably fitted in the cylinder body and provided with a valve, and a piston rod having one end fixed to the piston and the other end pivotally joined to the thigh frame, and a stepping motor for adjusting the opening of the valve of the cylinder. The opening of the valve of the cylinder is adjusted by the stepping motor to regulate sliding speed of the piston by adjusting the resistance against the flow of air through the valve so that the leg frame is able to swing relative to the thigh frame properly according to a predetermined walking speed. Data concerning the opening of the valve is taught to the teaching playback swing-phase-controlled above knee prosthesis by signals sent out by an external data setting device.

Teaching playback swing-phase-controlled above knee prosthesis

Growing community of inventors

Takasago, Japan

Yoshihisa Araki