MEMBER SPOTLIGHT
Impulse Technology
By DEBORAH CONN
Mimicking Human Movement Pennsylvania company offers prosthetic components aimed at restoring mobility
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MPULSE TECHNOLOGY GOT ITS start in 2013 when two
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MAY 2022 | O&P ALMANAC
Impulse Technology owners Kamrun Nahar, PhD, and Aman Haque, PhD, at a trade show exhibit booth not fit properly or do not allow
COMPANY: them a natural gait,” Nahar says. Impulse Technology “Over time, this can lead to addiOWNERS: Kamrun Nahar, PhD; Aman Haque, PhD; and Pennsylvania State University LOCATION: State College, Pennsylvania HISTORY: Nine years
Impulse Technology offers a passive prosthetic ankle component designed to mimic human movement.
tional pressure on their other limbs and joints, back problems, pain, and limited mobility. The more closely a prosthetic leg can mimic human movement, the better it will be for the person wearing it.” Nahar and her team proposed adding a passive prosthetic ankle component that allows a prosthetic leg to more closely mimic human movement, at a competitive price. “Our solution was granted Phase I and Phase II Small Business Innovative Research Funding to develop it further,” she explains. Today, Impulse Technology offers a 6-degree-of-freedom ankle prosthesis, Goralign PSA, that can be mounted on most commercially available prosthetic feet. While the device’s advanced functionalities can benefit all lower-limb amputees, Nahar says, it will be particularly helpful to individuals who do not have access to or cannot afford high-end robotic prostheses or are located in remote areas where access to prosthetic care is limited.
Deborah Conn is a contributing writer to O&P Almanac. Reach her at deborahconn@verizon.net.
PHOTOS: Impulse Technology
Pennsylvania State University researchers, Kamrun Nahar, PhD, and Aman Haque, PhD, founded the company to commercialize innovative ideas and products in high-impact mechanical and energy applications. “For me, it was doing something new in a different career path,” says Nahar, who was a research faculty member in the Engineering Sciences and Mechanics Department. “For Dr. Haque, a mechanical engineering professor, it was a way to apply his research to real-life applications in parallel to his academic career.” Jeffrey Brandt, CPO, founder of Ability Prosthetics & Orthotics and director of business development at Ottobock Patient Care, is the company’s business advisor. “Jeff is a Penn State graduate, and we met him through clinical research [Ability P&O] was doing in conjunction with the university,” Nahar explains. Impulse Technology has five employees, including full-time mechanical engineers, parttime mechanical engineering technicians and research assistants, and administrative and marketing support staff. The business is located in State College, Pennsylvania, at Innovation Park, a business incubator and real estate space owned by Penn State. In 2017, the company learned that the Defense Health Agency at the U.S. Department of Defense was seeking to create prosthetic legs to give users improved mobility and comfort. “People with below-knee amputations often struggle with prostheses that do
“The product is a passive structure that offers self-alignment with variable stiffness in all planes of motion,” explains Nahar. “It ‘extends’ the optimal range of the dynamic alignment performed by the prosthetist, mitigating the negative effects of misalignment. This also enhances the mobility of the user by adapting to the changes in gait or terrain” and absorbing shock during heel strike and during twisting and bending. The company is working with Ability P&O in fitting patients with the Goralign PSA. “We are expanding our partnerships with other prosthetic clinics to fit the device and offer other prosthetic products in the pipeline,” Nahar says. The company markets heavily in the United States and abroad and participates in industry trade shows and conferences, including the AOPA National Assembly. Nahar recognizes the challenges facing Impulse Technology as a startup as it tries to penetrate the market and develop trust and brand reputation. She has noted the trend of consolidation and mergers in the industry and expects a smaller number of large corporations to influence patient care and the overall industry. “We plan to partner with larger manufacturers, patient-care facilities, and other stakeholders for our innovations and products to reach the patients,” she says. “The road to success might not always be a straight one,” acknowledges Nahar, “but we are taking on these challenges and plan to offer additional innovative product options for prosthetists to serve their patients.”
