• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers B
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• v.38 no.1
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• pp.57-62
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• 2014

Most analytical models of the human body have focused on conscious responses. A patellar tendon reflex, a representative example of spinal reflexes, occurs without a neural command. Muscle forces and activation of the quadriceps femoris muscles in healthy adults during patellar tendon reflex are identified in this study. The model is assumed to move in the sagittal plane, and the thigh and the trunk are assumed to be fixed in a sitting position so that the shank can move similar to a pendulum. The knee joint is modeled as a revolute joint, and the ankle joint is modeled as a fixed joint so that the shank and the foot can be regarded as one rigid body. Muscle forces are calculated following the inverse dynamic approach. Kinematic data obtained from an experiment (Mamizuka, 2007) are used as input data. Muscle activations are identified using a Hill-type muscle model. The obtained simulation results are compared with experimental results for validating the model and the underlying assumptions.