US 11,883,305 B2
Computer-controlled ankle-foot prosthesis with series J-spring actuation
Hugh M. Herr, Concord, NH (US); Matthew Lawrence Handford, Cambridge, MA (US); Christopher Charles Williams, Pittsburgh, PA (US); Matthew Eli Carney, Medford, MA (US); and Daniel Visan Levine, Decatur, GA (US)
Assigned to Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA (US)
Filed by Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA (US)
Filed on Nov. 19, 2021, as Appl. No. 17/455,884.
Claims priority of provisional application 63/117,395, filed on Nov. 23, 2020.
Prior Publication US 2022/0160522 A1, May 26, 2022
Int. Cl. A61F 2/66 (2006.01); A61F 2/68 (2006.01); A61F 2/50 (2006.01)
CPC A61F 2/6607 (2013.01) [A61F 2/68 (2013.01); A61F 2002/5003 (2013.01); A61F 2002/507 (2013.01); A61F 2002/6664 (2013.01); A61F 2002/6854 (2013.01)] 16 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. An ankle-foot prosthesis comprising:
a foot structure comprising an anterior portion and a foot keel leaf spring extending posteriorly from the anterior portion;
an ankle-bearing block mounted to and above the foot keel leaf spring;
a shank shell mounted to and above the ankle-bearing block at an ankle joint;
a prosthetic shank interface mounted to the shank shell;
an upper leaf spring extending posteriorly from the anterior portion of the foot structure above the keel leaf spring past the ankle-bearing block;
a processor controlled active element extending along an active element axis between the shank shell and a posterior portion of the upper leaf spring and coupled to the shank shell at a shank shell rotational bearing and to the upper leaf spring at an upper leaf spring rotational bearing.