EP3277242A1

EP3277242A1 - Device for driving the lower limbs of a person in dorsal or partial decubitus combined with driving walking in vertical position

Info

Publication number: EP3277242A1
Application number: EP16717469.7A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Roland Brodard
Original assignee: Rb Patents Sarl
Current assignee: Rb Patents Sarl
Priority date: 2015-04-01
Filing date: 2016-03-24
Publication date: 2018-02-07
Also published as: JP2018518208A; WO2016157043A1; CN107635622A; KR20170139035A; CH710937A1; US20180085276A1

Abstract

The invention relates to a device for driving the lower limbs of a person, comprising; a base frame (4); a table (2) supporting the person (1); at least one motorised mechanical orthosis arranged to constitute an interface with at least one of the lower limbs of said person (1) so that the movements of said lower limb and said orthosis are connected and identical, said orthosis being attached to one end of said table (2); and a device for functional electrical stimulation and for measuring an electromyogram (24, 25) comprising at least one pair of stimulation and measurement electrodes (28, 29) intended for acting on a muscle or muscle group of said lower limb, and for stimulating said muscle or muscle group, as well as for measuring the reaction of said muscle or muscle group, characterised in that the device also comprises a raising mechanism (3) which makes it possible to vary the vertical position of the table (2) relative to the base frame (4) between a low position, in which the transfer and the installation of the person (1) are made easier, intermediate working positions, and a raised position making it possible to drive the person (1) in standing position, and a mechanism for tilting said table (2) which makes it possible to vary the inclination of said table (2) relative to the base frame (4), in particular between a horizontal position, in which the person (1) is positioned in dorsal decubitus, and a vertical position, in which the person (1) is in standing position, the combination of the mechanisms for raising and tilting the table (2) allowing the mobility of said orthosis across the entire respective physiological ranges of movement of said lower limb.

Description

Device for training the lower limbs of a person in the supine or partial decubitus combined with the drive of walking in a vertical position.

Field of the invention

The field of the invention relates to a device for the rehabilitation and / or training of mobility, strength and endurance of the lower limbs of a person in supine or partial decubitus combined with the training of walking in a vertical position, in particular for rehabilitation following a motor or neuromotor handicap, such as, for example, paraplegia, hemiplegia or cerebral palsy; as well as in the field of sport for post-traumatic functional rehabilitation and / or training. State of the art

Devices exerting the mobility of the lower limbs of a person in a supine or sitting position are known, they are either simple pedaling devices, generally of the ergocycle type, such as for example the StimMaster and ERGYS2 devices, or devices allowing the extension of the legs against a load resistance, usually called "leg press", such as for example the device CON-TREX. Some devices benefit from the assistance of electrical neuromuscular stimulation.

The most advanced of these exoskeleton-type lower limb mobilization devices, assisted by closed-loop electrical neuromuscular stimulation, is described in US Pat. No. 7,381,192 and is commercially available under the trade name Motionmaker ™. This device allows training of mobility, muscle strength and endurance throughout the physiological range of lower limb joints. This device, however, has several disadvantages. In particular, it is not capable of rapid movements because the electric actuating motors of the exoskeleton type structure have limited powers because their dimensions are also limited because they are fixed on the mobile exoskeleton. For the same reasons, the maximum force delivered by this device during an extension exercise of lower limb of the "leg press" type is only 250 Newton per leg, very insufficient to allow the training of healthy and / or only paretic people, the force required for the "leg press" type of training. healthy person to be in the range of 2000 Newton per leg.

Other devices exercising the walking training of a person in a standing position are known, it is most often devices using a motorized treadmill on which the user is supported by a system of discharge of its weight usually by means of a parachute-type harness and whose walking on the treadmill is assisted by a leg orthosis or by a leg splint, while the weight of these elements may be supported by additional elements of discharge as for example a support in the form of a parallelogram. US Pat. No. 6,821,233 describes such a device. A variant of this type of device replaces the motorized treadmill with a system consisting of two motorized movable plates, each of these plates being intended to support one foot of the user. Said plates perform an alternating motorized movement forward and back which determines an alternating movement of the legs which is similar to the movement of the step. The GangTrainer and HapticWalker devices use this variant. Another device described by US Pat. No. 6,685,658 consists of a motorized verticalization table for the user, enabling him to move from the supine position to the vertical position with the feet then resting on two movable plates with alternating motorized movement.

The devices described above in the context of the state of the art have the disadvantage of not being versatile because they are either specific devices that exercise in a supine position or sitting mobility of the lower limbs and the training of the force and endurance of said mobility, or other specific devices which exercise in a vertical position a gait training. It is therefore necessary to improve the systems and methods proposed, to better meet the physiological requirements of a comprehensive and early rehabilitation of the motor and locomotor function of the lower limbs, and to facilitate and simplify the task of the operator of the system, while guaranteeing a totally reliable and efficient solution. The object of the invention is to be able to achieve by means of a single and versatile device, an early comprehensive functional rehabilitation of the lower limbs of a neurological patient (paralyzed or paretic) and / or the training of a person healthy by combining, in supine or partial position, the training of the mobility, strength and endurance of said limbs against an adjustable load resistance with, in the standing position (vertical), the early training of the walk. Description of the invention

The present invention relates to a device for training the lower limbs of a person in supine or partial decubitus combined with the drive of walking in the vertical position.

It is well known that immobilization of the limbs, including paralysis, results in a severe functional handicap that can be aggravated by a whole series of complications: muscular atrophy, pressure ulcers, spasticity, osteoporosis, circulatory disorders and muscular retractions. -tendinous as well as capsulo-ligamentous.

Musculotendinous retraction is associated with muscular atrophy. As a result, the muscle loses its strength and endurance. As a result, he loses his ability to provide functional work.

Capsulo-ligament retraction is also a major and very common complication that can cause limitation of joint range (ankylosis) and vicious attitudes. Over time, it can also have an impact on articular cartilage.

It is therefore imperative to prevent these various complications, and in particular the musculo-tendino-articular problems, by mobilizing the patient regularly from the beginning of his lesion by a well-established program according to the lesion, to strengthen the musculature and the endurance of the lower limbs.

It is also essential that, as soon as possible, the patient is placed in a vertical position (standing position), so that it is in a physiological position ensuring regularization of different metabolisms and many functions physiological, then begin an early training of locomotion function which is one of the main objectives for the restoration of walking at an optimal level. Ideally, limb mobility and walking workouts should be started in the earliest possible manner consistent with the specific case of a given patient. In a global way, the training must prevent inactivity from further delaying the motor system and neurological degeneration with neurological degeneration with neurological degeneration. Training is important to maintain neuronal activity until a potential regeneration of voluntary activities is revealed.

In neurological patients, the neuronal damage is mostly partial, and for example, only 20% of the paraplegic persons have suffered a total attack of the spinal cord, while 80% show only a partial attack of the spinal cord. .

The majority of neurological patients, with partial cerebral or spinal neuronal involvement, have a potential for functional recovery based on the great faculty of "plasticity" of the central nervous system and especially on its capacity for "substitutional plasticity", that is, that is to say that, as a result of a reorganization of the sub-lesional nervous circuits, unaffected nerve circuits, still healthy, may be substituted for destroyed nerve circuits to ensure their function. This substitutional plasticity can be stimulated because it is essentially determined by the nerve information supplied to the central nervous system by the proprioceptive nervous system and, more precisely, by the closed loop of regulation between the proprioceptive nervous system and the nerves. motors (alpha motoneurons) of the muscles concerned. ·

It should be remembered here an essential point: the contraction of any muscle responsible for a movement is under the control of the proprioceptive nervous system on which the muscle depends. This nervous system comprises proprioceptors, which are receptors, at the origin of a sensitive nerve fiber, sensitive to stimulations produced by the movements of the body. These receptors are located near bones, joints and muscles. The proprioceptive nervous system (which represents deep sensibility) forms, with the muscles it controls, a closed, subtle and precise closed-loop control system that allows control of body movement and position.

In the context of the proprioceptive nervous system, muscles play a major role because they contain two essential proprioceptors, the neuromuscular spindles, which predominantly inform the central nervous system of the position and movement of segments of the body's limbs relative to its environment by the transmission of information concerning the length of the muscles to which they belong and the rate of change of this length and the Golgi tendon organs by their transmission of information concerning the degree of tension (strength) of the tendon to which they belong and by consequence of the force exerted by the muscle concerned.

It follows from the above that these two intramuscular proprioceptors play a primordial role in the control of position and movements. But a common feature of these two types of intramuscular proprioceptors is that they are sensitive only to their stretching and that they remain silent in the absence of stretching.

All the information provided by the intramuscular proprioceptors allows a rigorous control of the contraction of the muscle, by the modulation of the motor nerve impulse, transmitted to this muscle by its motor neurons of medullary origin, in other words by its alpha motor neurons.

The following example demonstrates the importance of this common primordial characteristic. Normally, the voluntary contraction of a flexor muscle of a given joint causes a flexion movement of the joint. This contraction with shortening of said muscle determines a tension of the tendons of the muscle, the degree of force of which is transmitted to the central nervous system by the Golgi tendon organs, whereas the neuromuscular spindles of said muscle are co-activated (by the gamma motor neurons) with the contraction of this muscle and transmit to the central nervous system in real time the length of the muscle and the speed of variation of this length. In this case, all the proprioceptive information relating to articular flexion movement transmitted to the central nervous system is correct.

In the case where, contrary to a voluntary movement, the bending movement of said articulation is caused passively by an external means, manual or robotic, the induced movement causes the passive shortening imposed on the muscle, there is consequently, no tension is applied to the tendons of the muscle, and in the absence of tension, the Golgi organs remain silent, and the neuromuscular spindles, which are not coactivated by this passive shortening of the muscle, therefore remain silent as well. In this case, no proprioceptive information is transmitted to the central nervous system. The example above therefore highlights the major disadvantage resulting from a drive by passive movements imposed by an external manual or robotic means. It is becoming clear that such movements do not transmit to the central nervous system the valuable proprioceptive information essential for the effective stimulation of surrogate plasticity and that they may even be counterproductive.

It follows from the foregoing that the active participation of muscles in effective training of the lower limbs is imperative and unavoidable.

Thus, in neurological patients who have a deficiency or absence of motoneuronal control of voluntary muscle contraction, functional electrical stimulation (SEF) paretic or paralyzed muscles set in closed loop in real time is the solution of choice to cause contractions controlled muscles, able to transmit adequate proprioceptive information to the central nervous system. Another advantage of this stimulation type CLIMFES (Closed-Loop Integrated Myography Functional Electrical Stimulation) is to achieve and control, in strength, speed and range of motion, all physiological joint movements of the limbs. The essential purpose of a rehabilitation training is to enable the patient to recover and then maintain a functional working capacity (in a sense a "fitness" level) of the lower limbs which, as far as possible, is able to support the weight of the body in an upright position, or better still, be able to move it from a sitting position, even squatting to the vertical position and vice versa. At this stage only, the patient will be truly able to undertake early, with optimal benefit, a specific training of the process of walking biped. To achieve the objective described above, motor patterns of movement and walking should be as real and normal as possible. For this purpose, it must be ensured that the proprioceptive information supplied by the muscles to the central nervous system is as close as possible to information resulting from a similar voluntary movement. As a result, trained movements must be performed respecting the closest mimicry of the initial voluntary movements, with active participation of the muscles concerned and scrupulously respecting the load resistances that opposed these initial movements. In the specific case of the early training of the biped walking process, it suffices initially to scrupulously respect the kinematics and the dynamics against the natural load resistance of the movements of the three segments of the lower limbs, or of the sequence of movements flexion-extension of the thigh to the hip joint, from the leg to the knee joint and foot to the ankle joint, to properly stimulate the plasticity of substitution, then if necessary can see the first signs of functional motor recovery from walking. In case of convincing signs of recovery, a more elaborate training of natural walking on the ground taking into account in particular the specific natural movements of the basin can then be validly considered.

A complementary objective is to provide the reeducator with an early and reliable precursor index of the potential recovery capacity of a voluntary functional activity, by means of surface electromyography (EMG) of affected muscles, then to be able to follow the development of this recovery phase throughout the consecutive training sessions.

To date, there is no single and versatile device for training the lower limbs of a neurological patient in the supine or partial supine position combined with the training of walking in the upright position, which fulfills the conditions set forth herein. above, so as to be able to train the lower limbs in a physiological manner, respecting a close mimicry of the voluntary activity that has become impossible or restricted, following an injury to the central nervous system and the salvage of which can be evaluated. functional motor and its degree of evolution over time by means of an integrated system of surface electromyography (EMG).

The object of the present invention is to provide a single and versatile lower limb training device combined with early walking training which is free from the disadvantages (defects) listed above and which satisfies the conditions set out above. , so as to ensure a physiologically optimal training of lower limb rehabilitation, then of walking training, respecting the closest mimicry of a voluntary active training and integrating the evaluation of the results and their evolution over time to integrated electromyography (EMG).

The functional meeting in a single versatile device of the set of functionalities, usually devolved to two different types of devices, has the advantage that such a device, unique and compact, saves a lot of space and greatly facilitates the work of the operator, including the extent of the features available on the same device.

For this purpose, the invention relates to a device for driving the lower limbs as defined in claim 1.

detailed description

The following description, given as an example embodiment, refers to the drawings in which: FIG. 1 schematically illustrates an embodiment of the device according to the invention in its low horizontal position for the initial installation of the supine patient;

- Figs. 2 and 3 schematically show two positions, respectively an intermediate gradual position in partial decubitus in FIG. 2 and the vertical position (standing of the patient) in FIG. 3; - Figs. 4a and 4b show schematically the two extreme positions of the functional orthosis of the device of FIG. 1, in flexion 4a and in extension 4b;

FIG. 5 shows the parachute-type harness for supporting and holding the patient on the device, particularly in the positions of FIGS. 2 and 3;

FIG. 6 shows a block diagram of the entire system according to the present invention.

According to the exemplary embodiment of the device shown in FIG. 1, the device comprises a table 2 arranged and articulated on a movable scissor lift mechanism 3, so that said table, initially horizontal, can be gradually raised and inclined, and indexed in any intermediate position, as shown in FIG. 2 to a vertical end position shown in Fig 3. The scissor lift mechanism 3 is itself arranged on a base frame 4 provided with moving rollers 5. At the hinged end of the table 2 are fixed by means of a hinge 6, and by means of a height-adjustable support 7 two identical functional orthoses of the exoskeleton type, ie a functional orthosis for each leg of the patient 1. The table 2, duly padded is intended to support the patient's back and pelvis in the supine position. Each of the two orthoses constitutes a robotic system of serial type, composed of three segments 8, 9, 10, linked by joints 1 1, 12. Each of the orthoses is arranged to provide an exoskeleton for supporting and guiding the lower limb, thus providing a mechanical interface with the three body segments that make up the lower limb, namely the thigh, the leg and the foot.

For this purpose and with reference to FIG. 2, the segments of the lower limb, thigh and leg, can be linked to the corresponding segments 8, 9 of the mechanical orthosis by means of padded gutter-shaped supports 13, 14 and velcro closure straps 15, 16 connected to the orthotic structure. The orthotic segments of the thigh 8 and the leg 9 consist of telescopic tubes, the length of which can be adapted to the morphology of the patient, such that the orthotic joints of the hip 6, the knee 11 and the ankle 12 , coincide from a functional point of view, with the corresponding physiological joints of the patient. The third orthotic segment 10 constitutes the plantar support. The foot is held constantly pressed against the plantar support by means of a flexible structure, which is similar to the upper structure of a shoe, which can be closed firmly by soft tongues 17 closure type "velcro". The anatomy and biomechanics of the human limbs reveal a serial-type articular and muscular structure. Thus the interface described, intimately linking the body segments of the lower limb to the corresponding orthotic segments of serial type, is a functional unit: the movements of the member and the orthosis will therefore be linked and identical.

The robotic structure of the serial type of the orthosis therefore allows it to cooperate ideally with the own serial structure of the segments of the limb and to ensure the closest physiological mimicry, allowing to perform with the same simplicity and efficiency, also a lot of closed-loop muscle and joint workouts, such as leg press, pedaling and the gait process, as well as specific training with all the required precision in the open chain of a given joint and the muscles involved .

However, orthoses can also be made with a parallel type cinematics without departing from the scope of the present invention. The kinematics of the serial type of each orthosis, which has only one kinematic chain, is the simplest possible. The advantages of such a serial system are quite numerous, because this system is very easily adjustable to the morphology of the patient. It can be folded easily and automatically. The three joints being independent, the order is very simple.

But above all, as shown in Figs. 4a and 4b, the joint mobility allowed by such a system is maximum and allows an optimal training of joint mobility over its entire physiological extent. Indeed, such a training requires for each of the articulations the amplitudes of movements, respectively of extension and of flexion following:

Hip joint

Knee joint:

Articulation of the ankle

Exoskeletal type orthoses including the three hip joints, knee and ankle are placed on both sides of the lower limbs, the outer side. Each joint is driven by a crank-type mechanism and a motorized transmission. This mechanism allows to operate a crank via a connecting rod. This is, in the tradition of light medical robotics, a threaded rod that slides like a cylinder. The telescopic movement is obtained by a nut whose rotation is controlled by an electric motor, thus transforming the rotation of the motor and the nut in translation movement applied to the joints of the orthosis. The worm also plays a role of reducer. This "traditional" solution has the advantage of a reasonable cost and an implementation ensuring easy local control.

But this solution reveals several disadvantages:

The electric actuators have a low mass power, the latter being the ratio between the power developed by the actuator to the mass of the latter. The reduction ratio is fixed and limited. The speed and torque delivered depend on the reduction ratio: a low gear ratio allows greater speed, but a lower torque, a larger gear ratio decreases the speed, but increases the torque.

The capacity of the electric actuator is also limited by heating the engine, which must therefore be oversized.

In the present case of the device according to the invention, the actuators of the joints of the knee and the ankle represent critical masses since they are "worn" by the orthosis itself often in the cantilever position . Thus mass inertia becomes all the more critical as the speed of movement of the orthosis increases.

It follows from a previous realization of such a device with electric actuators yet duly calculated that the power and speed of leg orthoses may be just compatible to ensure initial training of the paralyzed lower limbs. But that the available speed and power are insufficient to ensure and control the movements of the members of the device according to the invention and in particular the management of the entire weight of the patient during the training of the process of walking. standing position. In the case of the device according to the invention an objective is to obtain in particular in the case of the training of the force by full extension of a leg (exercise "leg press") against load resistance, a maximum force of 2000 Newton at a maximum speed of 1 m / s.

Another objective is that the leg orthosis can, in the context of training in walking while standing on the plantar support 10 of the orthosis, support the entire weight of the patient during the support phase of the cycle of walking. Knowing that there is a maximum weight allowed of the patient of 140 kg and that during the taking of support this weight increases again by about 20%, the total weight to be supported is of the order of 170 kg. Therefore the target maximum force of 2000 Newton is required.

To overcome all the previously described disadvantages of electric actuators and meet the requirements of the present invention, provision is made to equip the device according to the invention with hydraulic actuators. The latter presenting the The following advantages: A mass power 5 to 10 times greater than the electric actuators, a very high acceleration power and a high speed of operation, even at maximum torque. These characteristics and the high rigidity of the hydraulic actuators allow a direct drive, without reducer, joints of the orthosis, well adapted to the distributed motricity of the joints of the orthosis and allowing fluid movements.

Another disadvantage of electric actuators is that their operation is very noisy, associated with their reducer, they emit an unpleasant noise strident, still significantly increased by the number of actuators operating simultaneously within an orthotic robotic device. Such noise causes a proven nuisance for the user and his environment.

On the contrary, a system of hydraulic actuators has the advantage of a virtually silent operation which provides a great comfort of use.

The only somewhat noisy elements of a hydraulic system are the pump and the electric servo-valves which can be grouped in a soundproof central unit.

Finally, hydraulic actuators still have the advantage, unlike electric actuators, not emit electromagnetic interference. This advantage is crucial in the immediate vicinity of an integrated electromyogram measurement system (EMG) used in conjunction with the operation of the actuators, as will be described later. As shown in FIG. 1, the orthotic joints of the knee 11 and of the ankle 12 are of the crank-handle type. The connecting rod being the rod of the double-acting hydraulic cylinders 18 and 19. In this arrangement, the connecting rod has an end making a translational movement associated with a pendulum movement connected to the crank.

The orthotic hinge requiring a total rotational capacity of 150 ° can not be of the crank-handle type. A rotary hydraulic jack 20 is used for this purpose. Each hydraulic cylinder is provided with a position sensor, each orthotic joint is provided with an absolute angular position sensor 33, and force and torque sensors 34. Due to the adoption of a system of actuators Hydraulics of the mobility of orthotics, it is also planned to use hydraulic actuators respectively to actuate by means of a hydraulic cylinder the movable scissor lift mechanism 3 of the table 2 and to operate gradually by means of a jack 21 the transition from the horizontal position of the table 2 shown in FIG. 1 to the vertical position of said table shown in FIG. 3 and to index it at any intermediate inclined position as shown in FIG. 2.

Fig. 5 illustrates by way of example a harness (37) complete support of the person on the reception table 2. This harness comprises a pelvic main belt (or pelvis), fixed by its dorsal part to said table. This belt is provided with a thigh-type lower part (39), intended to support the weight of the patient, especially in a vertical position, and an abdominal stabilizing belt.

Straps (38) are also attached to the upper rear portion of the pelvic girdle. The other end of the straps is attached behind the patient's shoulder to the reception table 2. All the harness is provided perfectly adjustable to the size of a given person.

The harness has three functions: 1) the lateral stabilization of the person, 2) in the supine position and in the intermediate positions in partial decubitus, the shoulder straps counterbalance the reaction force exerted during the training exercises, especially in the case of exercise of "leg press", and 3) in standing position for the exercise of walking, the shorts support the weight of the person.

With reference to FIG. 6 which shows, by way of example embodiment, the block diagram of a system according to the present invention described hereinafter.

A central control unit 22 which contains a microcomputer 23 which is the central unit for programming, data processing and control of the entire system. This microcomputer is connected with different modules or units described below. The microcomputer 23 is connected with at least one electrical neuromuscular stimulation module 24.

Each output channel of a stimulation module 24 is connected to a switching station 27, responsible for the management of a pair of electrodes 28 and 29.

The microcomputer 23 is also connected with at least one electromyogram measuring module (EMG) 25 whose measurement input channel is connected to the switching station 27.

The microcomputer 23 is also connected directly with the switching station 27.

The microcomputer 23 is also connected with a management and control unit 32 of a pair of reference electrodes 30 and 31 of the EMG system grounded to said system. The entire modular system of neuromuscular stimulation and electromyogram measurement presented above and applied according to the present invention constitutes a "multi-channel system of functional electrical stimulation (SEF) and electromyogram measurement (EMG) described in detail. in Swiss Patent Application No. 00262/15 as well as in International Patent Application PCT / IB2016 / 050896.

The microcomputer 23 is also connected with at least one management and control unit 26 of the electronic identification and authentication microchips incorporated in the electrodes 28 and 29, as well as 30 and 31. This identification and verification system Electrode authentication applied according to the present invention is described in detail under the title "Transcutaneous Surface Electrode with Embedded Electronic Microchip" in Swiss Patent Application No. 00263/15, as well as in International Patent Application PCT / IB2016 / 050896. . The microcomputer 23 is also connected with the position sensors 33 integrated in each of the joints 6, 11 and 12 of the orthoses, as well as to the hydraulic actuators of the scissor lift mechanism 3 of the table 2 and to the actuator 21. the inclination of the table 2. The microcomputer 23 is also connected with the force and torque sensors 34 integrated in each of the joints 6, 11 and 12 of the orthoses, which can be mobilized or braked by the hydraulic cylinders 18, 19 and 20.

The position sensors 33 and the force and torque sensors 34 transmit their information in real time to the microcomputer 23. This microcomputer for managing the central control unit 22 interprets this data, which makes it possible to know in detail real-time articular angular position, acceleration and angular velocity of each joint, as well as the forces and torques that develop there, as well as the height of the position of the table 2 above the ground and the angle tilt of said table, which can gradually vary from the initial horizontal position to the vertical position. This information thus constitutes a complete feedback of the activity under load resistance of each joint. This technical feedback is thus substituted for physiological feedback, as it is normally transmitted to the central nervous system by the proprioceptive nervous system. In fact the technical feedback provided by the orthotic serial structure closely mimics the deficient physiological feedback.

The microcomputer 23 is also connected to each of the electrohydraulic servo valves of the group 35 which controls the hydraulic flow delivered, by the hydraulic power unit 36 comprising a reservoir and a pump, to each hydraulic actuator (hydraulic cylinder) 18, 19, 20 , 21 and the scissor lift mechanism 3.

The microcomputer 23 is finally connected to a human / machine interface 37 with a touch screen for the control of the device by the operator, combined with a system of "biofeedback" by the display on said screen placed in front of the person in exercise, various data indicating the level of performance achieved or to be achieved, in particular to motivate and encourage the person to persevere. The specialized literature highlights the importance of a mental implication that can have a marked beneficial complementary effect that facilitates ongoing activity. The conforming execution of a training program is controlled by a so-called "compliance" device which stores in the microcomputer 23 different data resulting from the execution of said training, such as for example the possible differences in execution of each of the initially programmed parameters. This compliance can then be consulted and interpreted by the operator.

With reference to FIG. 1, the device is shown in its initial position with the patient's home table in its lowest position, for example at 55 cm above the ground. In this position, the mechanism for adjusting the height of the support 7 also makes it possible to lower the hinge 6 for fixing the orthoses to the table 2 so as to retract the orthoses below the plateau of said table as shown in FIG. . 1.

This low position of the patient's reception table with the retracted fixation of the orthoses allows easy transfer of said patient from his chair to said table. Then, by means of the scissor lift mechanism 3, the table can be raised to an optimum height for the operator and the height of the adjustable support 7 can be adjusted so that the hinge 6 for fastening the orthoses cooperates correctly with the hinge. the patient's hip. For the operator, this intermediate position of the height of the table 2 and the patient greatly facilitates the anthropometric adjustments, including the adjustment of the harness (37), the length of the telescopic orthotic segments of the thigh 8 and the leg 9 , supports 13 and 14, and their closure straps 15 and 16, and the placement of the electrodes.

Then by the gradual adjustment, respectively of the height of the table 2 and its inclination in the intermediate position in partial decubitus, the position of the patient is brought to the optimum driving position of a given exercise, such as for example " leg press "or pedaling, or any other given exercise. An example of said intermediate position is illustrated in FIG. 2. The gradual adjustment, respectively of the height of the table 2 and its inclination allows in the final position to bring the table 2 to a suitable height and in a vertical position with the patient standing on the plantar supports 10 ortheses of the legs, then that its own weight is supported by the harness according to FIG. 5.

In this ultimate position shown in FIG. 3, the patient is ready to start a workout of the walking process.

The essential purpose of the device is to be able to generate lower limb movements with any type of duly controlled trajectories, executed against fixed or scalable load resistances programmed.

The kinematics of the trajectory of a given movement is calculated and stored in the microcomputer 23. This kinematics of a given trajectory can be reproduced with complete fidelity because each of the two functional orthoses motorized by the hydraulic actuators 18, 19, 20 is a robotic system of serial type consisting of three segments 8, 9, 10 linked by the joints 1 1, 12 and the work table 2 by the hinge 6. The position sensors 33 and the force sensors and torque 34, incorporated in each of said joints of the orthosis allow closed-loop adjustment in real time of said trajectory.

Initially a given trajectory is calculated to be reproduced passively, with no force exerted by the patient, only the own masses of the orthosis and the mass of the leg are taken into account and neutralized, in particular against gravity. In this case there is no active interaction of the subject with the orthosis.

Then the same trajectory is voluntarily accomplished by a healthy subject and the electromyogram (EMG) sequence of the muscles involved is duly measured and recorded. This procedure can be repeated with different values of load resistances applied to the joints.

An identical procedure can be performed, in the subject's standing position, for the specific trajectory of the legs during a walking cycle. The path reproduced in a passive manner, at zero force exerted by the patient, is performed while the entire weight of the patient is supported by his harness, resulting in a total absence of force applied to the plantar support 10 and therefore no force of reaction exerted by said plantar support.

The same trajectory of the gait cycle is then voluntarily actively performed by a healthy subject and the electromyogram (EMG) sequence of the muscles involved is duly measured and recorded. This procedure must be repeated with different values of the force applied to the plantar support 10 causing an equivalent reaction force exerted by said plantar support, which force will correspond to the proportion of weight of the subject released from its support by the harness.

This variation of the force applied on the plantar support 10 can be obtained by a very slight variation of the trajectory of said plantar support produced by a very slight modulation of the length of the circle radius described between said plantar support and the orthotic joint of the hip 6. When said circle radius is very slightly reduced the force applied to the plantar support 10 increases and the reaction force exerted by said plantar support increases in an equivalent manner, which causes an equivalent force discharge at the level of the support harness from subject.

This slight modulation of said radius of the circle may go as far as the total application of the weight of the body on the plantar support 10 and therefore the complete discharge at the harness.

Even in this extreme case, the necessary shortening of said radius of the circle does not significantly interfere with adequate cooperation of the orthotic segments with the body segments of the leg, allowing unrestricted, correct completion of the gait cycle.

By this same game of real time modulation of said circle radius during a gait cycle, it is possible to modulate the reaction force exerted by the plantar support 10 to respect a close mimicry with the modulation of the ground reaction force. well-known participant in a voluntary walking cycle. When the voluntary execution of the trajectory of a given movement is not possible, because of a paralysis of the muscles involved, or deficient because of a paresis of the said muscles, it has been pointed out above in the text of the description of the invention, the major disadvantage resulting from a passive drive imposed by an external manual or robotic, and on the contrary all the primordial and physiologically essential importance of the active participation of the muscles involved.

It is also disclosed that in such cases, the active participation of the muscles can be effectively brought about by stimulation of said muscles by means of CLIMFES closed-loop closed loop functional muscle stimulation (Closed-Loop Integrated Myography). Functional Electrical Stimulation).

To achieve such stimulation, a complex prior modeling of each given muscle that includes the stimulation intensity (mA) is usually performed. The model also takes into account the influence of joint angles. This is modeled by two cubic functions, one for each joint in the case of bi-articular muscles. The identification is accomplished at various determined angles and intensities. The total identification time for force strength and force position relationships is therefore about 10 minutes. It finally results from this type of modeling that the adapted regulator is complex. Such modeling has in particular been described in US Pat. No. 7,381,192.

The complexity of modeling and regulator, the number and complexity of the calculations that must be performed slowing the process, and especially the identification time of 10 minutes required before each training session have many disadvantages.

According to the present invention a different stimulation strategy for overcoming the aforementioned drawbacks is applied.

The device comprises an integrated measurement and pre-registration system of the electromyogram (EMG) sequence of all the muscles involved in the execution of a defined trajectory, this sequence defines, throughout said trajectory and for each muscle, a stimulation window according to the position of its EMG, which also prevents said muscle from being stimulated at non-physiological moments. The position-force relationship also results from said stimulation window. The strength-intensity relationship is also based on EMG measurements.

For a predefined trajectory, performed in a deliberately active manner by a healthy subject without help from the device of the invention and by means of its only physical capabilities, all the reference data of the corresponding sequence of the measured EMGs can be recorded in line in a correspondence table integrated into said system.

Furthermore, during the execution of said predefined trajectory, the measurements made by the articular position sensors 33 and / or the force sensors 34 can be recorded in a correspondence table integrated in the system that can cooperate with the correspondence table of the EMGs. .

Such an implementation has the advantage of being simple, precise and very fast. Because the lookup table represents exactly the desired path, no approximation is made.

As a result, EMG measurements provide the correct timing information for electrical stimulation. While the force sensors 34 allow the adjustment of the intensity of the electrical stimulation. The combination of the EMG measurements and said force sensors 34 finally allows closed-loop real-time closed-loop neuromuscular stimulation of the CLIMFES (Closed-End) type.

Loop Integrated Myography Functional Electrical Stimulation).

Consequently, a simple regulator for adjusting the hydraulic actuators 18, 19 and 20 can be of the conventional PID (proportional integral derivative) type, there is no longer any need for a more complex implementation to control the orthotics of the legs.

The device described above provides extreme versatility of applications because it is capable of generating and controlling lower limb movements performing any type of properly controlled physiological trajectories performed against fixed or scalable load resistors programmed. It allows both closed-chain muscle and joint workouts as well as specific open-chain workouts of a given joint. It allows in the supine or partial supine position training mobility, strength and endurance of the lower limbs and upright early training of walking.

Thanks to its integrated system combining a CLIMFES stimulation with the EMG measurements, it ensures a physiologically optimal training with active participation of the muscles which, combined with the respect of the closer mimicry of the voluntary activity that has become impossible or restricted following an injury of the central nervous system, and, if necessary, its surrogate plasticity and to objectively evaluate the beginnings of a functional recovery, then its evolution over time through the integrated system of measurement of surface electromyography (EMG).

Finally, it allows optimal global training of a person with motor or neuromotor disabilities, such as for example paraplegia, hemiplegia, and cerebral palsy; as well as in the field of sport for post-traumatic functional rehabilitation and / or training.

Following the description that has just been made, in order to illustrate how the invention can be advantageously achieved, it should be noted that the invention is not limited to this embodiment. Several embodiments of a training device of the lower limbs and upper limbs of a person in supine or partial supine combined with the drive of walking in the vertical position can be envisaged in the field of the man of the art without departing from the scope of the present invention as defined in the appended claims.

Claims

claims

A device for driving the lower limbs of a person, comprising a base frame (4), a table (2) supporting the person (1), at least one motorized mechanical orthosis arranged to form an interface with at least one lower limbs of said person (1) so that the movements of said lower limb and said orthosis are connected and identical, said orthosis being attached to an end of said table (2), and a functional electrical stimulation device and electromyogram measurement (24, 25) comprising at least one pair of stimulation and measurement electrodes (28, 29) for acting on a muscle or muscle group of said lower limb for, on the one hand, stimulating said muscle or muscle group, and, secondly, measure the reaction of said muscle or muscle group, characterized in that it further comprises an elevation mechanism (3) for varying the vertical position of the ta ble (2) relative to the base frame (4) between a low position, in which the transfer and installation of the person (1) are facilitated, intermediate working positions, and a high position for driving in position standing of the person (1) and a tilting mechanism of said table (2) for varying the inclination of said table (2) relative to the base frame (4), in particular between a horizontal position, in which the person (1) is positioned supine, and a vertical position, in which the person (1) is in a standing position, the combination of the lifting and tilting mechanisms of the table (2) allowing the mobility of said orthosis throughout the respective physiological ranges of movements of said lower limb.

2. Device according to claim 1, characterized in that it comprises two orthoses, each being arranged to form an interface with one of the lower limbs of the patient.

3. Device according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that each orthosis comprises at least three orthotic segments (8, 9, 10) intended to form a mechanical interface with respectively the thigh, the leg and the foot of the person (1 ), the first and second segments (8, 9) having means (13, 15; 14, 16) for their respective connections to the thigh and the leg of the person (1) and the third segment (10) being arranged so as to constitute a plantar support and comprising means (17) for its attachment to the foot of the person (1), the first segment (8) being connected at one of its ends to the table (2) by a first motorized articulation (6) positioned at the hips of the person (1) and, at its other end, at one end of the second segment (9) by a second motorized articulation (1 1), the other end of said second segment (9) being connected by a third motorized articulation (12) to the third segment (10), the motorization of the joints (6, 1 1, 12) being provided by actuators (18, 19, 20).

4. Device according to claim 3, characterized in that the connecting means of the first and second orthotic segments (8, 9) consist of padded supports in the form of gutter (13, 14) for housing one of the lower limbs of the person (1) and in straps (15, 16) connected to said orthotic segments (8, 9).

5. Device according to claim 3 or 4, characterized in that the third orthotic segment (10) has the general shape of a shoe for housing one of the feet of the person (1), said shoe being firmly closed by means of flexible tabs (17).

6. Device according to one of claims 3 to 5, characterized in that the actuators (18, 19, 20) are of hydraulic type, including double-acting hydraulic cylinders (18, 19) for the second and third joints ( 1 1, 12) and a rotary hydraulic cylinder (20) for the first articulation (6).

7. Device according to one of claims 3 to 6, characterized in that the first and second orthotic segments (8, 9) consist of elements of varying lengths, so as to adapt their length to the morphology of the person (1).

8. Device according to one of claims 3 to 7, characterized in that the first hinge (6) is adjustably attached to the table (2) so that it can be retracted below the level of the table (2) in a horizontal position to facilitate the transfer and installation of the person (1) on said table (2).

9. Device according to one of claims 3 to 8, characterized in that each articulation (6, 1 1, 12) is provided with at least one position sensor (33) and at least one force sensor ( 34), said sensors (33, 34) being able to transmit in real time to a central control unit (22) data relating to the position of said articulation (6, 1 1, 12) and to the forces and torques which are 'develop there.

Device according to claim 9, characterized in that the central control unit (22) contains at least one reference data table in which a series of electromyogram measurements made by the pair of electrodes have been recorded. of stimulation and measurement (28, 29) in relation to a series of measurements made by the position and force sensors (33, 34), said reference data being relative to a reference user having mobilized each of its lower limbs according to a predefined trajectory by means of its only physical capabilities, said central control unit (22) using said reference data table to control the actuators (18, 19, 20) and the pair of stimulation and measurement electrodes ( 28, 29) in a closed loop and in real time so as to mobilize at least one of the lower limbs of the person (1) along said predefined path.

1 1. Device according to claim 9 or 10, characterized in that the central control unit (22) comprises a microcomputer (23).

12. Device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the tilting mechanism of the table (2) comprises at least one actuator (21).

13. Device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the table (2) supporting the person (1) is equipped with a harness (37) supporting said person (1).

14. Device according to claim 13, characterized in that the harness (37) comprises an upper part with shoulder straps (38) intended, in horizontal or inclined position of the table (2) with the person (1) supine position dorsal or partial, to counterbalance the reaction force exerted during strength training exercises, and a bottom portion type bib (39), intended in a vertical position, to support the weight of said person (1).

15. Device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the lifting mechanism comprises a scissors structure (3) integrated with the base frame (4).