The Damping System in Crutches: Development of New Model

The damping systems design is a fundamental feature in a crutch because it decreases the forces in the upper members of the users and consequently reduces the chance of eventual injuries coming up. However, the damping system present in the currently marketable crutches cause discomfort to their users. Thus, the main object of this project was to develop a new damping system approach in order to minimize the problem previously stated. Initially, a study of the existing crutches was carried out and then, a biomechanical characterization of the gait assisted by crutches was performed. Considering the results of the gait analysis and the morphology of the crutch, a hydraulic damping system was scaled and designed in the Inventor software for a specific target audience which was settled to include children between the ages of 5 and 10. This target audience was selected because usually, children don't have the required strength to effectively operate with this kind of devices and they adapt more easily to new ones.