Functional Electrical Stimulator is a device used to impart electrical impulses to a targeted excitable cell, which can cause action potential and thus elicit contraction in the contractile tissue. This device can be used both as a diagnostic tool and therapeutic intervention. Can be used for subjects suffering from paraplegia, tetraplegia, dysphagia, facial nerve paralysis, etc.
This device can be used to recover the atrophied muscles of a subject. Suppose, a subject with cauda equina injury will end up with lower limb paralysis. Placing electrode pads over the lower limb targeted muscle's like quadriceps, hamstrings, etc. muscles can be contracted using electrical stimulation. The impulses in this case can be imparted either transcutaneously or subcutaneously.
It can also be used in assistive cycling. This requires patterned stimulation techniques in a closed loop algorithm.
A four channel version was also designed and fabricated.
