The metabolic cost of hopping is reduced with the assistance of an exoskeleton that places a spring in parallel with the entire leg. Energy stored and returned by the spring replaces work that otherwise would be done by muscle-tendon units (MTU). Similarly, exoskeletons bridging only the ankle joint can replace work from ankle plantarflexors. Therefore, the first aim of this study was to test if a spring-loaded ankle exoskeleton could reduce the rate of metabolic energy consumption during hopping. It was hypothesized that net metabolic power would be reduced when an ankle exoskeleton with a spring assisting plantar-flexion was used due to less work being done by the plantar-flexor muscles.

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