Ankle Muscle Synergies for Smooth Pedal Operation Under Various Lower Limb Posture

摘要

A study on muscle synergy of ankle joint motion is important since the acceleration operationresults in automobile acceleration. It is necessary to understanding the characteristics of anklemuscle synergies to define the appropriate specification of pedals, especially for the acceleratorpedal. Although the biarticular muscle (i.e., gastrocnemius) plays an important role for theankle joint motion, it is not well understood yet. In this paper, the effect of knee joint angle andthe role of biarticular muscle for pedal operation are investigated. Experiments of the pedaloperation were performed to evaluate the muscle synergies for the ankle plantar flexion motion(i.e., the pedal operation motion) in the driving position. The experimental results suggest thatthe muscle activity level of gastrocnemius varies with respect the knee joint angle, and smoothpedal operation is realized by the appropriate muscle synergies.