Biomedical subjects

Thierry Keller

Publications and source records attributed to Thierry Keller.

5 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2005

Modular transcutaneous functional electrical stimulation system.

A new multipurpose programmable transcutaneous electric stimulator, Compex Motion, was developed to allow users to design various custom-made neuroprostheses, neurological assessment devices, muscle exercise systems, and experimental setups for physiological studies. Compex Motion can generate any arbitrary stimulation sequence, which can be controlled or regulated in real-time using any external sensor or laboratory equipment. Compex Motion originated from the existing Compex 2 electric stimulator, manufactured by a Swiss based company, Compex SA. The Compex Motion stimulator represents a further evolution and expansion of the ETHZ-ParaCare functional electrical stimulation system. This stimulator provides all the advanced functional electrical stimulation (FES) application and control features and can be easily incorporated into any standard rehabilitation program. Compex Motion has successfully been applied as a neuroprosthesis for walking, reaching and grasping in more than 100 stroke and spinal cord injured patients. This system has also been used to strengthen muscles and to investigate muscle properties in able-bodied subjects. Compex Motion is a multipurpose FES system specially designed to promote sharing and exchanging of stimulation protocols, sensors, and user interfaces. To the best of our knowledge an FES system that has similar capabilities does not exist yet.

Adult↗

PubMed2005

Overcoming abnormal joint torque patterns in paretic upper extremities using triceps stimulation.

The goal of this research project was to quantitatively assess whether transcutaneous triceps stimulation can overcome the expression of abnormal torque patterns in the paretic upper limb of subjects with hemiparetic stroke. Abnormal torque patterns consist of strong coupling between shoulder abduction (SAB) and elbow flexion (EF) or between elbow extension (EE) and shoulder adduction (SAD) torques. Both patterns reduce the active range of motion during arm movements. Eight chronic stroke subjects with moderate to severe (Fugl-Meyer assessment scores of 21/66-36/66) upper limb motor impairment participated in this study. Shoulder and elbow joint torques were measured with a 6-degrees-of-freedom load cell under isometric conditions, while the triceps muscle was stimulated to generate EE torques. At the same time the subjects were asked to lift up their arm to generate different SAB torque levels. The obtained isometric results showed that electrical stimulation can overcome abnormal torque patterns in chronic stroke subjects while generating SAB. This is likely to have potential benefits to increase the reaching workspace of the paretic arm.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

Sliding mode closed-loop control of FES: controlling the shank movement.

Functional electrical stimulation (FES) enables restoration of movement in individuals with spinal cord injury. FES-based devices use electric current pulses to stimulate and excite the intact peripheral nerves. They produce muscle contractions, generate joint torques, and thus, joint movements. Since the underlying neuromuscular-skeletal system is highly nonlinear and time-varying, feedback control is necessary for accurate control of the generated movement. However, classical feedback/closed-loop control algorithms have so far failed to provide satisfactory performance and were not able to guarantee stability of the closed-loop system. Because of this, only open-loop controlled FES devices are in clinical use in spite of their limitations. The purpose of the reported research was to design a novel closed-loop FES controller that achieves good tracking performance and guarantees closed-loop stability. Such a controller was designed based on a mathematical neuromuscular-skeletal model and is founded on a sliding mode control theory. The controller was used to control shank movement and was tested in computer simulations as well as in actual experiments on healthy and spinal cord injured subjects. It demonstrated good robustness, stability, and tracking performance properties.

Algorithms↗

PubMed2002

Transcutaneous functional electrical stimulator "Compex Motion".

Research groups in the field of functional electrical stimulation (FES) are often confronted with the fact that existing and commercially available FES stimulators do not provide sufficient flexibility and cannot be used to perform different FES tasks. The lack of flexibility of the commercial systems until now forced various FES research teams to develop their own stimulators. This paper presents a newly developed firmware and graphical programming software for the commercial Compex 2 stimulator which enhances the versatility and capabilities of the stimulator from a medical and therapeutic device to a neuroprosthesis and research tool. The new stimulator, called Compex Motion, can now be used to develop various custom-made neuroprostheses, neurological assessment devices, muscle exercise systems, and experimental setups for physiological studies. It can be programmed to generate any arbitrary stimulation sequence that can be controlled or regulated by various external sensors, sensory systems, or laboratory equipment. By interconnecting two or more Compex Motion stimulators, the number of stimulation channels can be increased to multiples of four channels, 8, 12, 16, 20, and so forth. The stimulation sequences and the control strategies are programmed and stored on exchangeable credit card-sized memory chip cards. The stimulator has four biphasic current-regulated stimulation channels and two general purpose analog input channels that can be configured to measure the output voltage of a variety of sensors such as goniometers, inclinometers, gyroscopes, or electromyographic (EMG) sensors. For real-time EMG control of the stimulation patterns, an EMG processing algorithm with software stimulation artifact blanking was implemented. The Compex Motion stimulator is manufactured by the Swiss company Compex SA and is currently undergoing clinical trials.

Electric Stimulation Therapy↗

PubMed2002

Neuroprostheses for grasping.

In recent years a number of neuroprostheses have been developed and used to assist stroke and spinal cord injured subjects to restore or improve grasping function. These neuroprostheses clearly demonstrated that the targeted group of subjects can significantly benefit from this technology and that functional electrical stimulation (FES) is a viable method for restoring or improving grasping function. In this article the FES technology is briefly explained and some of the better known neuroprostheses for grasping are discussed. Furthermore, a typical population of subjects that can benefit from this technology is indicated as well as the methodology to select and train these subjects to apply the neuroprosthesis in daily living activities. This article also provides a brief summary of the achieved results with the existing neuroprostheses for grasping and discusses some of the challenges this technology is currently facing.

Artificial Limbs↗