General description
PROMONA-2, active prosthesis, is aimed for disabled persons with above knee amputation. It enables level walking, upstairs and downstairs walking, as well as walking on inclined and irregular terrains. It consists of the mechanical part of the system, the control system and a power supply. Several types of motion of the prosthesis leg have been programmed and the disabled patient can select a desired program. The program selection is accomplished through a small control box, which is carried on the patient's belt. The system is powered by a DC servo motor, which performs knee joint rotation through the ball screw reductor and a system of levers. An optical shaft encoder for position and velocity control, and two optical switches as limiters are incorporated in the microprocessor based control system. The main start-stop switch, is incorporated into the heel of the artificial foot. The prosthesis height can be adapted according to the user demands. Specific orthopedic parts (the socket and the foot) are linked to the powered part of the prosthesis by standard connections. The main advantage of PROMONA-2 active prosthesis with respect to passive prosthesis are that it provides for normal upstairs/downstairs walking, and the patient gets less fatigued during walking.
Direct link for video: Video 1
Technical Characteristics
| Power supply: | 24V, set of Ni-Cd batteries |
| Movement autonomy: | 2 hours of level walking with one battery charging |
| Rotation angle of artificial knee joint: | up to 90 degrees |
| Rotation angle of ankle joint: | up to 30 degrees |
| Average walking velocity: | 1 m/s |
| Total prosthesis weight: | 6 kg |