Apparatus to improve balance and gait in humans and prevent foot injuries

摘要

Wearable system for the neurological stimulation of a foot and / or an ankle of a human individual, the system comprising: a platform that has at least one vibrating actuator adapted to apply mechanical stimulation to mechanoreceptors in the foot and / or ankle presenting a sub-threshold magnitude that is below a threshold at which the target cells are activated by a stimulus, and a sensor; characterized in that said sensor is adapted to capture activity of the individual, said vibrating actuator is further adapted to apply mechanical stimulation to mechanoreceptors in the foot and / or the ankle presenting a supraumbral magnitude that is above the threshold at which target cells are activated by a stimulus, and because said system further comprises a controller that includes at least one polarization signal generator adapted to provide a drive signal to drive at least one vibrating actuator, the controller being adapted to adjust the drive signal to make a transition from at least one vibrating actuator between the provision, to the mechanoreceptors in the foot and / or the ankle, (i) of the mechanical stimulation presented by the sub-threshold magnitude on the basis that the sensor detects that the individual's foot is in a support phase and (ii) of the mec stimulation nica presenting suprathreshold magnitude based on the sensor to detect the individual's foot is in a swing phase, and a power source adapted to provide electrical power to the controller.