Human Walking Model Predicts Joint Mechanics, Electromyography, and Mechanical Economy

We study the mechanical behavior of leg muscles and tendons during human walking in order to motivate the design of economical robotic legs. We hypothesize that quasi-passive, series-elastic clutch units spanning the knee joint in a musculoskeletal arrangement can capture the dominant mechanical behaviors of the human knee in level-ground walking. Biarticular elements necessarily need to transfer energy from the knee joint to hip and/or ankle joints, and this mechanism would reduce the necessary muscle work and improve the mechanical economy of a human-like walking robot.