Advances in prosthetics improves mobility and mimics natural movement

11/08/2013 - 00:00

Recent advances in robotics technology make it possible to create prosthetics that can duplicate the natural movement of human legs. This capability promises to dramatically improve the mobility of lower-limb amputees, allowing them to negotiate stairs and slopes and uneven ground, significantly reducing their risk of falling as well as reducing stress on the rest of their bodies.

That is the view of Michael Goldfarb, the H. Fort Flowers Professor of Mechanical Engineering, and his colleagues at Vanderbilt University’s Center for Intelligent Mechatronicsexpressed in a perspective’s article in the Nov. 6 issue of the journal Science Translational Medicine.