Guest Editorial FES Control Strategies, Methods of ... - IEEE Xplore

IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON REHABILITATION ENGINEERING, VOL. 5, NO. 1, MARCH 1997

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Guest Editorial FES Control Strategies, Methods of Selective Activation, Applications, and Test Models

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HIS Special Section on Functional Electrical Stimulation (FES) and a previous one in the December 1996 issue of this TRANSACTIONS are the outgrowths of a Call for Papers to the readership of this TRANSACTIONS and to the members of the International Functional Electrical Engineering Society. The 39 manuscripts submitted to the TRANSACTIONS that fit the theme of the Special Section were subjected to rigorous peer review and one or more revisions. Seven articles appeared in the December 1996 Special Section; four were more appropriately published in December’s 1996 Special Section on Rehabilitative Biomechanics and nine are contained in this Special Section. This yields a 50% acceptance rate to date for these submissions. In this issue, the papers by Chang et al. and by Abbas and Triolo focus on the design of effective FES controllers, using either a hybrid neural network/classical proportional-integralderivative (PID). controller or an adaptive feedforward one. The papers by Kobetic et al. and by Quevedo et al. deal with how one selects (or sequences) various muscle groups to produce a more effective ambulation or the ability to step over small obstacles. Both present clinical verification. The papers by Koole et al. and by Tyler and Durand discuss how a portion of a peripheral nerve can be selectively activated, with the assumption that the ability to do so will result in selective activation of specific muscle groups innervated by that nerve. Two innovative electrode designs are presented and evaluated. Potentially exciting clinical applications of FES are found in the remaining papers. The paper by Fahgri et al. demonstrates an important therapeutic clinical application of FES for reducing blood stasis during and after joint arthroplasty. Such an application could reduce complications of this procedure by reducing venous thrombosis and subsequent pulmonary embolism. Finally, two technical reports provide insight regarding

the development via animal models of new applications of FES The first, by Shannon et al., gives human information confirming animal studies regarding localization of stimulation in the central nervous system. The Communication by Robinson et al. proposes that FES might well have a role in somatosensory neuroprosthetics and presents pilot data to suggest that the raccoon might be an appropriate animal in which to test such prostheses. These articles, taken together with those presented in the previous issue, demonstrate the exciting on-going fundamental studies and clinical applications of electrical stimulation for functional restoration. This area is indeed an exciting and vibrant area of rehabilitation engineering. Other articles on FES are in the review process and new manuscripts continue to be submitted to this TRANSACTIONS. Thus, it is likely that yet a third Special Section will be formed to present additional contributions to the field of functional electrical simulation.

Publisher Item Identifier S 1063-6528(97)03069-3.

1063–6528/97$10.00  1997 IEEE

CHARLES J. ROBINSON, Editor Dept. Rehabilitation Science & Technology University of Pittsburgh Pittsburgh, PA 15260 USA VA Rehabilitation Neuroscience Laboratory VA Medical Hospital Pittsburgh, PA 15206 USA P. HUNTER PECKHAM, Guest Editor Rehabilitation Engineering Center MetroHealth Medical Center Cleveland, OH 44109 USA