Weighing weight : effect of below-knee prosthetic inertial properties on gait

textabstractIn this thesis, the influence of prosthetic inertial properties (mass, mass distribution and moment of inertia) on the gait of transtibial amputation (TTA) subjects is studied. Chapter 1 introduces the present ideas on prosthetic mass. It describes that the general design effort has always been, and still is, to reduce prosthetic mass. However, as far as we know, lightweight design has never been advocated in the present literature. The Chapter introduces the opposite view, found in a relatively large body of literature, that lightweight design might not be beneficial for prosthetic gait. The aim of this thesis, therefore, is to determine the optimal inertial properties of the prosthetic leg