A device for stimulating the Meissner's Corpuscles along the front plantar portion of the foot or feet of a person is provided. The device has a platform disposed upon motion guides for movement up and down with respect to a base. The platform has a shaped surface for ease of placement of at least the front plantar portion of at least one foot of a person seated in front of the device in which the back or heel portion of the foot is disposed away from the device. One or more inertial actuators are attached to the platform underneath its surface. A controller controls operation of the actuator(s), via signals to a driver, to move the platform with respect to the base in a sinusoidally varying motion at a user selectable stimulation level. The stimulation level may be set wirelessly via an external device, or by manually tilting the device.

An exercise device for stretching the calf muscles and Achilles tendon of a user. The exercise device includes a rod with a pair of grips, a pair of straps, and a foot platform. The pair of straps has two ends; or a first end and a second end. The first end of each strap is affixed to opposing distal ends of the rod. The second end of the pair of straps is affixed to distal, or outside, ends of the foot platform. The exercise device can have a rotatable sleeve with a plurality of surface protuberances on the sleeve. The rotatable sleeve is mounted on the rod between the pair of grips. The rotatable sleeve can be used as a massager by rolling the sleeve over a muscle while gripping the grips on either side of the sleeve.

A walking assistance apparatus includes stimulus applying means for applying a stimulus to a leg part on which a walking assistance apparatus is mounted and state detection means for detecting a supporting leg condition and a lifted leg condition of the leg part on which the walking assistance apparatus is mounted. The stimulus applying means applies a first stimulus to the leg part when the state detection means has detected that the leg part on which the walking assistance apparatus is mounted is in the lifted leg condition, and the stimulus applying means does not apply a stimulus to the leg part or applies a second stimulus that is weaker than the first stimulus when the state detection means has detected that the leg part on which the walking assistance apparatus is mounted is in the supporting leg condition.

A training guidance instrument 200 includes a pressor part 2091, a heel placing part 2092A, and a control unit including rotary members 210 and 214, support members 211 and 215, rotary parts 202A and 202B, support members 212 and 216, and telescopic members 219 and 220. The control unit is configured to move the heel placing part 2092A toward the ground in response to application of a force Pw2 toward the ground which is stronger than upward force applied on the heel placing part 2092A when the heel placing part 2092A is positioned above and away from the ground and move the heel placing part 2092A upward in response to application of weaker force toward the ground than the force Pw2 on the heel placing part 2092A, while the second joint and third joints of the toes of the trainee are pressed by the pressor part 2091 and the heel is placed on the heel placing part 2092A.

A walking assistance apparatus includes a knee fastener, a heel fastener, a first wire and a second wire connected to the knee fastener and the heel fastener, a first motor connected to the first wire, a second motor connected to the second wire, and a control circuit that controls the first motor and the second motor. The first wire is connected to a first position included in a right-half region of the heel fastener. The second wire is connected to a second position included in a left-half region of the heel fastener. The control circuit acquires gait information of the user, and, based on the gait information, the control circuit controls the first motor to reduce a length of the first wire and the second motor to reduce a length of the second wire at a predetermined timing.

A knee range of motion device utilizing tangential joint translation and distraction is disclosed. The device includes a carriage connected to a base, the carriage having a base attachment section; a thigh support section pivotally attached to the base attachment section; and a lower leg support section pivotally connected to the thigh support section. The device further including a carriage support extending between the thigh support section and the base, the carriage support pivotally connected to the thigh support section and adapted to slide in slots on the base; a first actuator connected to the lower leg support section to extend and retract the lower leg support section, thereby causing a foot support connected to the lower leg section to move; and a second actuator connected to the lower leg support section to raise and lower a calf support, causing an anterior and posterior tibial translation.

A walk training apparatus includes a walking assist device, a first tensile portion, and a second tensile portion. The walking assist device is configured to be attached to a leg of a user so as to assist the user in walking. The first tensile portion pulls at least one of the walking assist device and the leg of the user toward a vertically upper side and toward a front side. The second tensile portion pulls at least one of the walking assist device and the leg of the user toward the vertically upper side and toward a rear side.

Portable devices and methods for preventing deep vein thrombosis (DVT) by assuring that the ankle is flexed and extended sufficiently to promote blood flow in the lower leg are disclosed. The device includes an actuator with a free movement mode that allows a patient to move freely between activations or to initiate movement to delay a next automatic activation.

Method and apparatus for improving mobility in patients affected by a neurodegenerative disease, through controlled and localized mechanical stimulation of the foot, at the tip of the big toe and the lower big toe metatarsal joint. Described herein is an apparatus comprising stimulators for the right and left foot and it attains such mechanical stimulation according to predetermined intensity parameters, stimulation sequence, duration and cyclical repetition. Mobility improvement was observed in particular in patients affected by Parkinson's disease.

A device (7) for the rehabilitation of the movements of the foot (1) includes a supporting base (8) and a mobile platform (9) with a supporting surface (10) for resting the sole of the foot (1), wherein the mobile platform (9) is secured to the supporting base (8) by a pure rotation movement mechanism (12) with three degrees of freedom of rotary movement independent the one from the other and placed in parallel which allow rotations of the mobile platform around three axes (13, 14, 15) which intersect one another in a single rotation center (P). The supporting surface (10) is turned towards the rotation center (P) and is distant from the rotation center (P) in such a way that the rotation center (P) is positioned in correspondence to the ankle (2) of the foot (1).