Next Article in Journal
Medium-Energy Synthesis Gases from Waste as an Energy Source for an Internal Combustion Engine
Previous Article in Journal
Case Study: 3D Modelling and Printing of a Plastic Respirator in Laboratory Conditions
 
 
Search for Articles:
Title / Keyword
Author / Affiliation / Email
Journal
Article Type
 
 
Advanced Search
 
Section
Special Issue
Volume
Issue
Number
Page
 
Journals
Applied Sciences
Volume 12
Issue 1
10.3390/app12010097
applsci-logo
Submit to this Journal Review for this Journal Propose a Special Issue
► Article Menu

Article Menu

share Share announcement Help format_quote Cite question_answer Discuss in SciProfiles
first_page
settings
Order Article Reprints
Font Type:
Arial Georgia Verdana
Font Size:
Aa Aa Aa
Line Spacing:
Column Width:
Background:
Article

Structural FEA-Based Design and Functionality Verification Methodology of Energy-Storing-and-Releasing Prosthetic Feet

by
Johnnidel Tabucol
1,2,3,*,
Tommaso Maria Brugo
1,2,
Marco Povolo
1,
Marco Leopaldi
2,
Magnus Oddsson
4,
Raffaella Carloni
3 and
Andrea Zucchelli
1,2,*
1
Department of Industrial Engineering, University of Bologna, 40131 Bologna, Italy
2
Interdepartmental Centre for Industrial Research in Advanced Mechanical Engineering Applications and Materials Technology, University of Bologna, 40131 Bologna, Italy
3
Bernoulli Institute for Mathematics, Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence, Faculty of Science and Engineering, University of Groningen, 9747 AG Groningen, The Netherlands
4
Research and Development, Össur, 110 Reykjavík, Iceland
*
Authors to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Appl. Sci. 2022, 12(1), 97; https://doi.org/10.3390/app12010097
Submission received: 19 November 2021 / Revised: 13 December 2021 / Accepted: 15 December 2021 / Published: 23 December 2021
(This article belongs to the Section Biomedical Engineering)
Browse Figures
Review Reports Versions Notes

Abstract

The prosthetic feet that are most often prescribed to individuals with K3/K4 levels of ambulation are the ESR feet. ESR stands for energy-storing and -releasing. The elastic energy is stored by the elastic elements in composite materials (carbon fiber or glass fiber). ESR feet must be developed and optimized in terms of stiffness, taking into account the loads that a healthy human foot undergoes and its kinematics while walking. So far, state-of-the-art analyses show that the literature approaches for prosthetic foot design are not based on a systematic methodology. With the aim of optimizing the stiffness of ESR feet following a methodological procedure, a methodology based on finite element structural analysis, standard static testing (ISO 10328) and functional verification was optimized and it is presented in this paper. During the path of optimization of the foot prototypes, this methodology was validated experimentally. It includes the following: (i) geometry optimization through two-dimensional finite element analysis; (ii) material properties optimization through three-dimensional finite element analysis; (iii) validation test on physical prototypes; (iv) functionality verification through dynamic finite element analysis. The design and functional verification of MyFlex-γ, a three-blade ESR foot prosthesis, is presented to describe the methodology and demonstrate its usability.
Keywords: finite element analysis (FEA); prosthetic feet; stiffness optimization; biomechanics finite element analysis (FEA); prosthetic feet; stiffness optimization; biomechanics

Share and Cite

MDPI and ACS Style

Tabucol, J.; Brugo, T.M.; Povolo, M.; Leopaldi, M.; Oddsson, M.; Carloni, R.; Zucchelli, A. Structural FEA-Based Design and Functionality Verification Methodology of Energy-Storing-and-Releasing Prosthetic Feet. Appl. Sci. 2022, 12, 97. https://doi.org/10.3390/app12010097

AMA Style

Tabucol J, Brugo TM, Povolo M, Leopaldi M, Oddsson M, Carloni R, Zucchelli A. Structural FEA-Based Design and Functionality Verification Methodology of Energy-Storing-and-Releasing Prosthetic Feet. Applied Sciences. 2022; 12(1):97. https://doi.org/10.3390/app12010097

Chicago/Turabian Style

Tabucol, Johnnidel, Tommaso Maria Brugo, Marco Povolo, Marco Leopaldi, Magnus Oddsson, Raffaella Carloni, and Andrea Zucchelli. 2022. "Structural FEA-Based Design and Functionality Verification Methodology of Energy-Storing-and-Releasing Prosthetic Feet" Applied Sciences 12, no. 1: 97. https://doi.org/10.3390/app12010097

APA Style

Tabucol, J., Brugo, T. M., Povolo, M., Leopaldi, M., Oddsson, M., Carloni, R., & Zucchelli, A. (2022). Structural FEA-Based Design and Functionality Verification Methodology of Energy-Storing-and-Releasing Prosthetic Feet. Applied Sciences, 12(1), 97. https://doi.org/10.3390/app12010097

Note that from the first issue of 2016, this journal uses article numbers instead of page numbers. See further details here.

Article Metrics

Back to TopTop