This study aims to develop a lightweight, portable and cost effective system for 3D motion analysis of the upper limb which can be readily applied within a clinical environment

Chan, A.M.

Nicol, A.C.

English

This study aims to develop a lightweight, portable and costeffective system for 3D motion analysis of the upper limb which can be readily applied within a clinical environment

University of Strathclyde Institutional Repository

Strathprints Institutional RepositoryChan, A.M. and Nicol, A.C. (2005) A new portable 3-D gyroscope system for the evaluation of upperlimb function. In: Proceedings of the XXth Congress of the International Society of Biomechanics,Cleveland, Ohio, 2005-07-31 - 2005-08-05, Cleveland, Ohio.Strathprints is designed to allow users to access the research output of the University of Strathclyde.Copyright c© and Moral Rights for the papers on this site are retained by the individual authorsand/or other copyright owners. You may not engage in further distribution of the material for anyprofitmaking activities or any commercial gain. You may freely distribute both the url (http://strathprints.strath.ac.uk/) and the content of this paper for research or study, educational, ornot-for-profit purposes without prior permission or charge.Any correspondence concerning this service should be sent to Strathprints administrator:mailto:strathprints@strath.ac.ukhttp://strathprints.strath.ac.uk/A NEW PORTABLE 3-D GYROSCOPE SYSTEM FOR THE EVALUATION OF UPPER LIMB FUNCTIONA.M.A. Chan and A.C. NicolBioengineering Unit, University of Strathclyde (Glasgow, UK)Email: anita.chan-@strath.ac.ukINTRODUCTIONThe shoulder joint is extremely important for the positioningof the hand in order to interact with the environment andinterest in the restoration of good function to the upper limb isbecoming increasingly important. Current clinical methodsfor functional assessment are limited to subjective painquestionnaires and physical examination which relies largelyon the experience of the clinician. While motion analysistechniques have become widely used in researchenvironments, they are not suitable for use in a clinicalenvironment due to their requirement for long and complextesting procedures. The use of kinematic sensors have showngreat promise in gait analysis [1, 2] but these systems havetended to be heavy and bulky.This study aims to develop a lightweight, portable and costeffective system for 3D motion analysis of the upper limbwhich can be readily applied within a clinical environment.METHODSThe 3D gyroscope system consists of three identical units(figure 1a) and uses a total of 9 single axis gyroscopes(Murata ENC 03JA). Each gyroscope unit holds three singleaxis gyroscopes securely at right angles to one another withina rigid plastic housing to allow the recording of angularvelocity in three dimensions. The plastic housing (figure 1b)consists of an inner core to which the gyroscopes aremounted, a circular base, and a conical shaped lid.Figure 1: (a) one 3D gyroscope unit, (b) components of theplastic housing.Each 3D gyroscope unit is small (40mm diameter by 25mmhigh) and lightweight (20g approximately) and is mountedonto the body independently of other system components,thereby minimising size and weight so as not to affect theproduction of movement when attached to the upper limb ofthe subject.Figure 2a and 2b shows the 3D gyroscope system mountedonto the chest, upper arm and forearm. Data from the 3Dgyroscope system were sampled simultaneously with an 8camera Vicon 612 motion analysis system while the subjectperformed a variety of movements including maximal flexionand extension, and movements to simulate activities of dailyliving such as brushing hair and dressing.Figure 2a and 2b: Front and rear view of 3D gyroscopesystem and retroreflective markers mounted onto healthysubject.RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONAngular velocity data were filtered and integrated to obtainangle data. Figure 3 shows angle data for the upper arm 3Dgyroscope unit during a ‘reach up back’ activity.-70-60-50-40-30-20-100102030400 1 2 3 4 5 6Time (s)Angle(degrees)AbductionInternal rotationExtensionFigure 3: Upper arm 3D gyroscope output for ‘reach up back’activity.The results of this research indicate that the 3D gyroscopesystem shows potential for use within a clinical setting as aportable motion analysis system for the upper limb.REFERENCES1. Mayagoitia, RE, et al. J Biomech 35, 537-542, 2002.2. Tong, K, and Granat, MH. Medical Engineering andPhysics. 21, 87-94, 1999.ACKNOWLEDGEMENTFunded by Zimmer USA.1a 1b2a 2b291ISB XXth Congress - ASB 29th Annual MeetingJuly 31 - August 5, Cleveland, Ohio

Medical Engineering and Physics.

A new portable 3-D gyroscope system for the evaluation of upper limb function

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A new portable 3-D gyroscope system for the evaluation of upper limb function

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