1066-033X/18©2018IEEE DECEMBER 2018 « IEEE CONTROL SYSTEMS MAGAZINE 35
M
obility disorders caused by spinal cord in-
jury (SCI), stroke, or progressive neurological
diseases such as multiple sclerosis and amyo-
trophic lateral sclerosis, lead to a deterioration
in quality of life. Resulting sequelae, such as
pressure ulcers, depression, and urinary infections, re-
quire constant medical care throughout a patient’s lifetime.
Evidence has shown that, following an injury or a disease,
individuals who use rehabilitative interventions to restore
walking and standing functions experience fewer second-
ary medical complications than do wheelchair users [1].
Two such rehabilitative interventions include functional
electrical stimulation (FES) and powered exoskeletons.
These technologies have the potential to mitigate second-
ary health complications, lower medical expenses, and
achieve independent ambulation in individuals following
an SCI (see “Summary”).
NAJI A. ALIBEJI,
VAHIDREZA MOLAZADEH,
FRANK MOORE-CLINGENPEEL,
and NITIN SHARMA
A Muscle
Synergy-
Inspired
Control Design
to Coordinate Functional
Electrical Stimulation
and a Powered Exoskeleton
ARTIFICIAL GENERATION
OF SYNERGIES TO REDUCE
INPUT DIMENSIONALITY
Digital Object Identifier 10.1109/MCS.2018.2866603
Date of publication: 13 November 2018