The biggest challenge in developing the SimBionics framework remains in the interdisciplinary nature of developing interfaces for prosthesis control. SimBionics combines and further develops the state of the art in musculoskeletal modelling, real-time control of walking and balancing and methods to provide sensory feedback as well as their clinical assessment and commercial translation. 

This challenge breaks down in multiple parts:

• Estimating robustly phantom knee and ankle mechanics (torque, stiffness and damping) via musculoskeletal models that do not need electrophysiological input data (e.g. electromyograms) is considered. 
• Embedding balance strategies in prosthetic controllers, i.e. reactive close-loop strategies, mimicking the reflexive circuits in the spine, which can adapt to abrupt changes in the environment and maintain balance during locomotion and standing.
• Providing amputees with somatosensory feedback from the prosthesis. Multichannel tactile stimulation will be used to transmit feedback on multiple variables of interest for walking and balancing. The feedback provided will close the loop by informing the amputee of the changes in behavior of the prosthesis.
• Developing personalised assessment methodologies methods to evaluate and predict the benefit of prosthetic technology for the amputee with a level of detail not possible presently.