Measuring highly accurate foot position and angle trajectories with foot-mounted IMUs in clinical practice

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleResearchpeer review

Authors

  • Andreas J. Jocham
  • Daniel Laidig
  • Bernhard Guggenberger
  • Thomas Seel

Research Organisations

External Research Organisations

  • FH JOANNEUM University of Applied Sciences
  • Technische Universität Berlin
  • Medical University of Graz
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Details

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)63-69
Number of pages7
JournalGait and Posture
Volume108
Early online date4 Nov 2023
Publication statusPublished - Feb 2024

Abstract

Background: Gait analysis using foot-mounted IMUs is a promising method to acquire gait parameters outside of laboratory settings and in everyday clinical practice. However, the need for precise sensor attachment or calibration, the requirement of environments with a homogeneous magnetic field, and the limited applicability to pathological gait patterns still pose challenges. Furthermore, in previously published work, the measurement accuracy of such systems is often only validated for specific points in time or in a single plane. Research question: This study investigates the measurement accuracy of a gait analysis method based on foot-mounted IMUs in the acquisition of the foot motion, i.e., position and angle trajectories of the foot in the sagittal, frontal, and transversal plane over the entire gait cycle. Results: A comparison of the proposed method with an optical motion capture system showed an average RMSE of 0.67° for pitch, 0.63° for roll and 1.17° for yaw. For position trajectories, an average RMSE of 0.51 cm for vertical lift and 0.34 cm for lateral shift was found. The measurement error of the IMU-based method is found to be much smaller than the deviations caused by the shoes. Significance: The proposed method is found to be sufficiently accurate for clinical practice. It does not require precise mounting, special calibration movements, or magnetometer data, and shows no difference in measurement accuracy between normal and pathological gait. Therefore, it provides an easy-to-use alternative to optical motion capture and facilitates gait analysis independent of laboratory settings.

Keywords

    Digital health, Foot motion estimation, Foot-mounted, Gait assessment, Inertial sensor, Wearable sensor systems

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Cite this

Measuring highly accurate foot position and angle trajectories with foot-mounted IMUs in clinical practice. / Jocham, Andreas J.; Laidig, Daniel; Guggenberger, Bernhard et al.
In: Gait and Posture, Vol. 108, 02.2024, p. 63-69.

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleResearchpeer review

Jocham AJ, Laidig D, Guggenberger B, Seel T. Measuring highly accurate foot position and angle trajectories with foot-mounted IMUs in clinical practice. Gait and Posture. 2024 Feb;108:63-69. Epub 2023 Nov 4. doi: 10.1016/j.gaitpost.2023.11.002
Jocham, Andreas J. ; Laidig, Daniel ; Guggenberger, Bernhard et al. / Measuring highly accurate foot position and angle trajectories with foot-mounted IMUs in clinical practice. In: Gait and Posture. 2024 ; Vol. 108. pp. 63-69.
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