Stereoradiographic Measurement of Ankle Bone Kinematics During Dynamic Activity with a Powered Footwear System

Date of Award

Summer 8-22-2026

Document Type

Masters Thesis

Degree Name

M.S. in Mechanical Engineering

Organizational Unit

Daniel Felix Ritchie School of Engineering and Computer Science, Mechanical and Materials Engineering

First Advisor

Casey Myers

Second Advisor

Peter Laz

Third Advisor

Brian Gearity

Copyright Statement / License for Reuse

All Rights Reserved
All Rights Reserved.

Keywords

Bone, Running, Exoskeleton, Kinematics, Dynamic

Abstract

Powered footwear systems (PFS) augment running propulsion through mechanized ankle torque assistance, yet their effects on ankle bone kinematics remain uncharacterized. This study utilized high-speed stereoradiography (HSSR) to quantify six-degree-of-freedom (6-DOF) kinematics of the tibiotalar joint, tibiocalcaneal motion, and the subtalar joint during running stance phase across five conditions: control, low power, high power, and two high power conditions with posterior heel strut offsets (+9 mm, +18 mm). Measurements were collected on 10 subjects, spanning US W8 to M12, and a US W8 subgroup (n = 4) isolated to investigate the influence of heel offset on alignment of the prototype's mechanical axis and the anatomical ankle rotation axis in smaller-footed users. Statistical parametric mapping was used to identify significant time series divergences from control across the stance-phase time series. Average results for the group supported a dose-dependent relationship where increases in torque augmentation led to greater plantarflexion and anterior translation. Ankle joint kinematics were influenced by heel offset, but also anatomic variability in bone morphology in the US W8 subgroup and the overall group. Subject-specific kinematics derived from stereoradiography provide new insight into ankle joint articulations not possible with motion capture and can help inform PFS design and sizing.

Copyright Date

8-2026

Publication Statement

Copyright is held by the author. Permanently suppressed.

Rights Holder

Destan Norman

Provenance

Received from Author

File Format

application/pdf

Language

English (eng)

Extent

135 pgs

File Size

13.1 MB

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