Impedance of the Human Ankle During Standing for Posture Control

The stiffness and damping of anatomical joints can be modulated by muscle co-contraction, where antagonistic muscles contract simultaneously, increasing both the joint’s stiffness and damping. In a second order system, the mechanical impedance, or simply impedance, is a function of the system’s inertia, damping, and stiffness. The ankle impedance can be defined as the resultant force due to an external motion perturbation. The impedance modulation of the human ankle is required for stable walking. The estimation of the time-varying impedance modulation of the human ankle is the focus of research by different groups [1,2].