Button interface

🥾 Next-Generation Ankle Rehabilitation System (Actuation Belt Trainer)

Welcome to the official repository for the Next-Generation Ankle Rehabilitation System, a biomechanically engineered solution designed to build structural resilience and prevent trail-induced lower-limb injuries.

👥 Meet the Team

Hikingggggggg(HKUST 2026 ISDN3001&ISDN3002 Group 1)

• Teammate:Kwok Tsz Yueng
  • Kwok Tsz Yueng(Tom)
  • Li,Kaile(Koil)
  • Lee Wang Ngai(Cyrus)
  • Yu Kin Shing(Ken)

We are a team of passionate engineers and biomechanics enthusiasts dedicated to bridging the gap between clinical rehabilitation and real-world outdoor sports readiness.

🏔️ Project Overview

The Problem: The Hiking Injury Epidemic

With the massive global expansion of hiking participation, there has been a severe spike in trail-induced injuries.

• Acute Lateral Sprains account for an overwhelming 85% of all acute trail traumas.
• In competitive downhill races, lower-limb injury rates spike dramatically to 49%.
• Hikers face a "Deficit in Terrain Adaptability"; modern flat surfaces fail to prepare the body for the eccentric braking and instantaneous balance reflexes required on unpredictable mountain terrains (like loose rock and scree).

When a sudden, forceful ankle inversion exceeds 25 degrees, it tears the Anterior Talofibular and Calcaneofibular ligaments.

The Solution: The Actuation Belt Trainer

Existing market solutions force a compromise: balance boards train reflexes but lack heavy external load, while clinical dynamometers are expensive and lack multi-axis functional movement.

After multiple ideation phases (including dynamic treadmills and linear pedal trainers), we finalized the Actuation Belt Trainer. This active, stationary device isolates the protective reflex arc by applying changeable, programmable external loads to train specific muscle reaction times across 3 Degrees of Freedom (DOFs).

⚙️ System Architecture

Our system integrates responsive hardware with a closed-loop software control mechanism to ensure precise resistance and user safety.

Control Loop Workflow

1. Command Input: Users input commands via a terminal to wirelessly control motor force and turning direction for specific muscle targeting.
2. Processing & Communication: A Microcontroller Unit (MCU) processes the command using a PID controller and sends signals via a CAN Module to 6 Motor Electronic Speed Controllers (ESCs).
3. IMU Feedback: An Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) under the pedal continuously detects the XYZ angle of the pedal.
4. Evaluation & Visual Feedback: The MCU calculates the control error against the target origin angle. If the user successfully holds the pedal within a +/- 10-degree range against the motor resistance for 5 seconds, an LED indicator triggers to signal successful completion.

🛠️ Component Design

The mechanical structure relies on motor-driven belts and gears to safely and effectively stimulate the ankle:

• Roll Mechanism (Inversion/Eversion): Four M3508 motors utilize a 1:1 gear transmission to transfer torque to a pulley system. This produces tension along an elastic belt connected to the pedal, creating a twisting motion that the user must resist.
• Pitch Mechanism (Dorsiflexion/Plantarflexion): A motor and gear turn the entire middle module and the central pedal, supported by a large external bearing for smooth turning. A limited angle of gear teeth physically restricts motion to guarantee it remains within an acceptable, safe anatomical range.

🔬 Biomechanical Validation

The system targets the biological failure points of the ankle by isolating the primary protective muscles:

• Fibularis (Peroneal) Group: Primary evertors critical for resisting sudden inward ankle rolling (inversion) on shifting scree.
• Tibialis Group: Crucial for dorsiflexion, arch support, and absorbing repeated impact with controlled eccentric braking during steep descents.

By engineering a device that challenges the ankle with resisted eversion and perturbation, the system is theoretically proven to improve strength and balance deficits.

🚀 Future Roadmap

• Weeks 1-3: Develop a dedicated mobile app for user control, design a "hiking-like" training mode, and improve mechanism functionalities.
• Weeks 4-6: Design pedals to fit different foot sizes, replace electronics to minimize overall device size, and refine the product outfit.
• Weeks 6-7: Conduct extensive user testing, identify potential new user groups, and perform evaluations based on feedback.
• Weeks 7-8: Design new features and establish a future plan for product line depth to fit various target demographics.

💾 Cloning This Repository

The repo uses git submodules (firmware) and Git LFS (large media files):

# 1. Install Git LFS (once per machine)
#    macOS:      brew install git-lfs
#    Windows:    winget install Git.LFS
#    Ubuntu:     sudo apt install git-lfs
git lfs install

# 2. Clone with submodules
git clone --recursive https://github.com/koilkl/y3yp.git

• git lfs install sets up the LFS filters on your machine. Without it, LFS-tracked files (e.g. *.mp4) are checked out as small pointer files instead of the real content.
• Already cloned without LFS support? Run git lfs install && git lfs pull to download the tracked files.
• --recursive fetches the firmware submodules under ELEC/; alternatively run git submodule update --init --recursive inside an existing clone.

📂 Repository Structure

y3yp/
├── DOCUMENT/                 # Presentations & demo video
│   └── Version-1.0/
│       ├── Midterm Presentation.pptx
│       ├── Final Presentation.pdf
│       └── demo video.mp4
├── ELEC/                     # Electronics & firmware
│   ├── Version-1.0/
│   │   └── Year_3_first_prototype/   # submodule: STM32F103C6T6, CAN motors + IMU + PID
│   └── Component/
│       └── Incliometer/              # submodule: STM32F401RETx, Modbus-RTU inclinometer
├── MECH/                     # Mechanical design (CAD)
│   └── Version-1.0/
│       └── Gen1-belt.zip             # Belt-actuation assembly (STEP)
└── readme.md                 # This file

📁 Resources & Appendices

• CAD Files & 3D Renders: MECH/Version-1.0/Gen1-belt.zip
• Source Code (First Prototype): yuu033/Year_3_first_prototype (submodule at ELEC/Version-1.0/Year_3_first_prototype/)
• Source Code (Inclinometer Component): koilkl/Incliometer (submodule at ELEC/Component/Incliometer/)
• Presentations: DOCUMENT/Version-1.0/
• Prototype Demo Video: DOCUMENT/Version-1.0/demo video.mp4