Technical Progress in Limb Prostheses: A Classification of Existing Devices

Abstract

The technical evolution of the prosthetic field is swift and the technical solutions for the limb prostheses are found in a vast number of the specialized literature, therefore for good information management, a generalized classification of the field is necessary. Based on the use of the idea diagram method, a multicriteria classification of the lower and upper limb prostheses was performed. The classification was made according to the levels of limb amputation, the way of attaching prosthetic devices to the patient, the generations of technological performance adopted over time, the areas in which these prosthetic devices are used, and the mechanisms used for generation and transmission of forces in the joints of ankle & foot prostheses. The results include general information and help novice researchers in future approaches to the field of limb prostheses.