An Implantable System for Angle Measurement in Prosthetic Knee

In this work we designed and tested an in-vivo measurement system of prosthetic knee joint angles. The system included a small permanent magnet in the femoral part and three magneto resistance sensors placed in the polyethylene part. The sensor configuration was defined based on sensitivity analysis, signal to noise ratio, saturation of sensors and movements constraints. A mapping algorithm was designed to estimate the orientation of the femoral part in sagittal and coronal plane. For validation the prosthesis was placed in a mechanical simulator equipped with reflective markers tracked by optical motion capture.