Grasping and walking neuroprostheses for stroke and spinal cord injured subjects

Rapid prototyping and portable functional electrical stimulation systems with surface stimulation electrodes were developed. The proposed systems were used to design grasping and walking neuroprostheses for spinal cord injured subjects and stroke subjects. The grasping neuroprosthesis restores a palmar or a lateral grasp in high lesioned spinal cord injured subjects. The walking neuroprosthesis eliminates the "drop foot" problem in incomplete spinal cord injured subjects and stroke subjects. The preliminary results obtained with the proposed neuroprostheses indicate that they can significantly improve the quality of life of stroke and spinal cord injured subjects, and that the subjects with such prostheses are more independent in daily living activities.