text:
“You shall not kill” (Exodus 20:13)
We believe that human life is sacred, created as we are in the image and likeness of the Creator. God alone is the custodian of life. Issues such as abortion, capital punishment, euthanasia, and suicide are the usual foci of this commandment. Since there are thousands of treatises on these topics, I have decided to take a different approach – the killing of the human spirit.
In an insightful article on the present economy, writer Jeffrey Pfeffer notes that an overreliance on downsizing and layoffs is killing workers, the economy, and even the bottom line.1 First, he reflects on the last two decades and points out that layoffs have become increasingly common in corporate life, in good times as well as bad. He acknowledges that there are circumstances in which a company has to downsize in order to survive. But he also draws on recent academic research that finds the costs of doing so when it is not a matter of company survival are often greater than the savings. There is the obvious toll on morale, the physical and health effects on employees, and the anxiety that infects remaining workers. In other words, there is a ‘killing of the spirit.’
Pfeffer writes: “Layoffs literally kill people. In the United States, when you lose your job, you lose your health insurance, unless you can afford to temporarily maintain it under the pricey COBRA provisions. Studies consistently show a connection between not having health insurance and individual mortality rates.” In addition, when people lose their jobs their sense of self-worth takes a serious ‘hit’. They get angry and depressed. Pfeffer notes that, people who are angry and depressed and who believe they have been treated unfairly can lose psychological control and exact vengeance on those they deem responsible. Research shows that even people who have no history of violent behavior are six times more likely to exhibit such after a layoff than similar people who remain employed.
Suicide rates also go up for those who have been dismissed, either fairly or unfairly. Such is the traumatic effect of losing one’s job. Pfeffer continues, “Anyone who’s suffered a layoff or watched a loved one lose a job can understand why downsizees exhibit increased rates of alcoholism, smoking, drug abuse, and depression.” Even in countries where there are strong social-welfare programs, losing one’s job is a traumatic experience.
Honoring the human spirit implies a caring attitude towards those who have to be laid off in order for a company to survive. Pfeffer describes some compassionate ways to minimize the psychological damage of layoffs: “Companies that behave humanely – by providing generous severance packages and allowing displaced employees to say goodbye to colleagues rather than marching them out the door – are likely to see a smaller hit to morale. Well-run companies also communicate clearly about why they’re eliminating jobs….” Respecting the dignity of each person is key to understanding this commandment.
Pfeffer concludes: “Despite all the research suggesting downsizing hurts companies (is harmful for the economy and devastating for employees), managers everywhere continue to do it.” High unemployment thus continues. The hope of finding another job, especially in the present economy, keeps dwindling. The spirit of those who are suffering the effects of ‘overzealous downsizing’ is seriously damaged if not destroyed.
Life is a precious gift entrusted to us by God. The fifth commandment includes respect for the physical, emotional, and mental health of the members of society. We each have a responsibility to make sure our institutions safeguard life in all its forms – from the ‘womb to the tomb.’ Thus, this commandment is not for individuals only to observe but the whole community, for the common good.
1. “Lay Off the Layoffs: Why Downsizing is Bad for Business,” by Jeffrey Pfeffer (Newsweek, February 15, 2010), pp. 32-37.
(February/March 2010 Newsletter)

domain: psychology


|Publication number||US5955667 A|
|Application number||US 08/949,472|
|Publication date||Sep 21, 1999|
|Filing date||Oct 14, 1997|
|Priority date||Oct 11, 1996|
|Also published as||CA2218242A1, CA2218242C|
|Publication number||08949472, 949472, US 5955667 A, US 5955667A, US-A-5955667, US5955667 A, US5955667A|
|Inventors||Kenneth Richard Fyfe|
|Original Assignee||Governors Of The University Of Alberta|
|Export Citation||BiBTeX, EndNote, RefMan|
|Patent Citations (8), Non-Patent Citations (1), Referenced by (350), Classifications (26), Legal Events (7)|
|External Links: USPTO, USPTO Assignment, Espacenet|
This Application claims benefit of Provisional Appln. 60/028,367 filed Oct. 11, 1996.
The invention relates to a method and apparatus for measuring acceleration, velocity and position of gait based on foot movement analysis.
The measurement and characterization of gait (i.e. human or animal) is performed by a wide range of methods. At one end of the scale is the measurement and analysis possibilities found in a well equipped bio-mechanical lab. The equipment in these labs typically includes automated 3D optical measurement systems, force plates and physiological output indicators. The output from these transducers are fed into a central computer that enables a wide range of analysis and display possibilities. At the other end of the spectrum is the simplified analysis performed with a ruler, stopwatch and trained clinical observations.
The reasons determining gait kinematic properties (such as acceleration, velocity and position) range from: (i) personal interest, (ii) training and performance considerations of the serious athlete, (iii) rehabilitation of the disabled or (iv) for the design and analysis of footwear.
From an athletic point of view, runners, joggers and walkers often like to know how far they have journeyed and how fast they have traveled, but have had only limited cumbersome ways to measure distance and speed. Distance can be measured after the fact with a calibrated bicycle or automobile or by traveling on a known premeasured route. For determining one's speed, a simple approach is to travel a known, fixed distance on a track or road and then record the length of time required to cover the distance. This method suffers from several limitations including (i) limited walking/running routes, (ii) speed indication at measured intervals only and (iii) only an average velocity is determined over the given distance.
There are a number of portable pedometers that attempt to tackle the problem of measuring both distance and velocity. However, they have failed to gain wide spread use, because these devices are essentially limited to stride counting. Distance and speed can only be estimated if stride length consistency is assumed. This approach is inaccurate because an individual's stride length changes considerably from day to day or even within one session due to changes in terrain, fatigue, interval training, or other factors.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,355,942 discloses a pedometer that counts strides based on compression cycles in a bellows under the heel and then estimates distance based on average stride length. The invention described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,741,001 uses a spirit-biased pendulum to count strides. The pedometer disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,649,552 uses a step sensor sealed into an insole to count strides. The pedometer of U.S. Pat. No. 4,651,446 counts strides by detecting flexion of the instep. Other counting pedometers include those under U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,117,444, 5,065,414, 4,855,942, 4,510,704, 4,460,823, 4,371,945, 4,322,609, 4,053,755, 3,818,194 and 3,635,399.
The majority of the patented pedometers are simply different methods of stride counting and do not address the problem of varying stride length. However, a pedometer listed under U.S. Pat. No. 4,371,945 uses ultrasonic emitters and sensors on alternate legs to measure the maximum distance between legs during each stride. While this is a significant improvement, this is only suitable for simple, low-speed gait patterns (no flight stage) and requires two sets of transducers; one on each leg.
The broad concept of using accelerometers for determining the velocity and distance traveled, for example by athletes, is described in German Patent 4,222,373. This patent describes the use of an accelerometer and integration to determine velocity and route or position. This device apparently processes acceleration data continuously and thus has an accumulated error from drift so that in very short period of time, the resulting data contains significant inaccuracies. The inventor indicates that this device is useful for skiers, surfers, sailors, cyclists, etc. and thus is not related to a striding device or for measuring the kinematics of striding and would not be effective for that purpose.
The Russian Patents 862074 and 885879 both by Volkov describe the attempts to overcome accumulated error in acceleration measuring devices by using a bar generator in combination with a summator and integrator. This described device does not make use of updated reference points and is thus also prone to accumulated drift.
A paper entitled "Estimation of Speed and Inclination of Walking Using Neural Networks" by Aminian et al., Published in the IEEE, Transactions on Instrumentations and Measurements; Volume 44 #3, June 1995, describes a portable data logger designed to record body accelerations during walking and uses three orthogonal accelerometers placed on the waistbelt to measure forward, vertical and heel acceleration. By means of neural networks, it correlates the recorded signals to the desired gait velocity and angle of incline. The generality of this method is questionable and no other gait information is produced.
The purpose of the device described herein is to provide a means to measure and display several human gait parameters (that may include instantaneous and average accelerations and velocities as well as total distance traveled) by means of a simple, low-cost, portable transducer that can accommodate a wide variety of gaits and varying stride length.
The present invention measures various parameters about each individual stride rather than assuming a given fixed length. With suitable signal processing, it can accurately determine velocity and distance traveled. The present invention can be modified to give many other useful indicators to the user such as pronation angles and impact forces. Because it is based on acceleration measurements and analysis, it inherently contains data that correlate directly to impact forces. When integrated, the acceleration data yields both instantaneous and average velocity. A second integration of these signals yields distance information such as total distance traveled or stride length. Other relevant pieces of information include stride rate and peak heel velocity. The invention also has the potential to measure biomechanic parameters such as degree of pronation and gait sway.
In broad terms, the present invention relates to a method of determining gait kinematics comprised during each stride defining a datum plane, determining angles between a pair of mutually perpendicular accelerometers to said datum plane, said pair of mutually perpendicular accelerometers adapted to measure acceleration in two mutually perpendicular directions in a plane of motion substantially perpendicular to said datum plane, measuring acceleration in said plane of motion in said two directions and converting said accelerations to provide acceleration in a selected direction.
Preferably said selected direction is parallel to the datum plane and said plane of motion.
Preferably said method further comprises integrating said acceleration in said selected direction to define velocity in said selected direction.
Preferably said datum plane is defined by the position of a sole plane when said sole plane is at rest on a surface in a stance phase of said gait and wherein said pair of mutually perpendicular accelerometers are positioned in fixed relationship to said sole plane.
Preferably said determining angles of a pair of mutually perpendicular accelerometers is based on measurements of a pair spaced parallel accelerometers positioned at a selected angle to said sole.
Preferably further comprising integrating said velocity to define distance in said selected direction.
Preferably said velocity is averaged over a plurality of strides to provide average velocity.
Broadly the present invention also relates to a device for measuring stride kinematics comprising means for mounting pair(s) of mutually perpendicular accelerometers in a fixed relationship to a datum plane defining surface and adapted to measure acceleration in said two mutually perpendicular directions, means for determining angular orientation of said accelerometers to a datum plane defined by a plane occupied by said datum plane defining surface when said plane defining surface is in a stationary position in a stance phase of said stride and means for determining acceleration in a selected direction based on measurements of acceleration by said mutually perpendicular accelerometers and said determined angular orientation of said accelerometers to said datum plane.
Preferably said means to determine angular orientation of said accelerometers to said datum plane comprises of a pair of spaced substantially parallel accelerometers mounted in fixed relation to said datum plane defining surface and means for calculating angular orientation based on differences in accelerations measured by said pair of spaced substantially parallel accelerometers.
Preferably said device further comprises means for converting acceleration in said selected direction to velocity in said selected direction be means of integration.
Preferably said device further comprises means to convert said acceleration in said selected direction to distance in said selected direction.
Further features, objects and advantages will be evident from the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments of the present invention taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which;
FIG. 1 is a schematic illustration of leg movement during walking or running.
FIG. 2 shows a shoe with accelerometers mounted thereon.
FIGS. 3a and 3b the various angles and movement vectors of the shoe.
FIGS. 4a, 4b and 4c are graphs of tangential acceleration, normal acceleration and angle of tilt of the foot respectively versus time.
FIGS. 5a, 5b and 5c are plots of horizontal acceleration, foot velocity and speed of travel respectively versus time.
FIG. 6 is a more detailed illustration of the accelerometers mounted on the shoe, and schematically illustrating their connection to a computer.
FIG. 7 is a flow diagram of one mode of operation of the computer.
FIG. 1A shows the relationship of the normal, tangential and angular acceleration vectors and the shoe angle.
FIG. 2A shows how the vectors combine to produce the net acceleration vector.
FIG. 3A is a view similar to FIG. 6 but showing a preferred arrangement.
FIGS. 4Aa, 4Ab and 4Ac are plots of upper tangential acceleration, lower tangential acceleration and normal acceleration respectively versus time.
FIG. 5A is a plot of foot acceleration during a single step.
FIGS. 6Aa, 6Ab and 6Ac are plots of angular acceleration, angular velocity and angular position respectively versus time.
FIG. 7A illustrates the accuracy of determined foot angle over time.
FIG. 8A is a plot of horizontal acceleration versus time.
FIG. 9A is a plot of drifting velocity versus time.
FIG. 10A is a plot of foot velocity versus time.
FIGS. 11A and 13A are plots of angle of foot tilt versus time.
FIGS. 12A and 14A are plots of horizontal foot velocity versus time.
FIG. 15A is a flow diagram similar to that shown in FIG. 7.
FIG. 16A is a plot of velocity versus time showing correlation of the invention at different stride velocities.
FIG. 1 shows various stages of gait in a runner (3 complete gait cycles are shown). The foot plants on the ground or supporting surface and comes to a complete rest in what is known as the stance phase of gait cycle as indicated at Points A in FIG. 1. The foot then begins to accelerate as indicated at B in FIG. 1 as the toe prepares to take off. The swing phase indicated at C follows as the leg passes through the air. Following this, the foot decelerates as it prepares to strike the ground as indicated at D and then repeats the cycle. These accelerations, decelerations and stoppings are utilized in the present invention to determine gait kinematics as will be described below.
The fact that the foot plants and it becomes at rest or stationary during the stance phase A is used to provide a datum position to define a datum plane for each stride of the gait thereby eliminating accumulated error that would be adherent in the process if it wasn't iterated commencing at each stance phase A.
The information to permit gait kinematic investigations is obtained via suitable sensors preferably acceleration sensors (accelerometers) 12 and 14 and a tilt sensor 16 and this information is fed to a suitable computer 2 that performs calculations transferred from the data from the accelerometers into the information format for delivery system 3 and displayed in the selected format (see FIG. 6).
The information may be transferred directly as represented by the arrow 4 or transferred by a transmitter 5 and then picked up by a receiver 6 in the display unit.
Two mutually perpendicular accelerometers 12 and 14 and a tilt sensor 16 (see FIG. 6) are mounted on the heel counter of a shoe 10 and thus in fixed position relative to a datum plane defining surface (sole) 11 of the shoe 10 as will be described below. The accelerometers are preferably (but not necessarily) orthogonally mounted as shown such that in the neutral standing position one is oriented vertically and one horizontally (FIG. 2). The vertical accelerometer 14 is referred to as the normal accelerometer and the horizontal accelerometer 12 is referred to as the tangential accelerometer. These accelerometers measure the accelerations of the heel as the leg traverses through the sagittal plane. While it is preferred to align these with one accelerometer (e.g. accelerometer 12) substantially parallel to the sole 11 and the other 14 substantially perpendicular thereto this is not essential.
The tilt angle θ is the angle between a datum plane 100 which (FIG. 3a), as will be described below is defined by a surface 11 represented by the sole 11 of the foot or shoe 10. The sole 11 has a fixed orientation relative to the two accelerometers 12 and 14, i.e. the sole 11 of the shoe 10 defines a plane and the position of the sole 11 on the shoe 10 in the stance position of the gait defines the datum plane 100 for the next stride. The angle θ is the instantaneous angle between the plane defined by the sole 11 and the previously defined datum plane 100 for that particular stride (see FIG. 3a).
As the shoe 10 is tilted during the stride, the accelerometers 12 and 14 measure the accelerations at and an in their respective directions as depicted in FIG. 3a. Knowing the foot angle θ at any point in time, these accelerations may be resolved into their components in the selected direction, but normally are resolved to a direction substantially parallel to the direction of the plane 100 (referred to below as the horizontal direction as it will generally be approximately horizontal as it will generally be approximately horizontal) and then added together (with vectors) yielding the net acceleration in the horizontal direction (see FIG. 3b).
Since the accelerometers are mounted in the plane of motion 102 (see FIG. 3b) the net acceleration is also parallel to the plane of motion 102, i.e. the direction in which the stride is taken. This horizontal acceleration can be calculated by the following equation:
ax =at cos(θ)-an sin(θ)
ax =acceleration in horizontal direction
at =acceleration of tangential accelerometer 12
an =acceleration of normal accelerometer 14
θ=angle of tilt of accelerometer 12 i.e. sole 11 of shoe 10 with respect to plane 100 which in normal operation will represent the ground or surface on which the stride is taking place.
FIGS. 4a, b, c show typical data gathered over several gait cycles for the two mutually perpendicular accelerometers 12 and 14 and tilt sensor 16 versus time in second(s). This includes data collected by the tangential accelerometer (FIG. 4a), by the normal accelerometer 14 (FIG. 4b) and finally, FIG. 4c shows the angle of foot tilt through the gait cycles.
The net horizontal acceleration ax, shown in FIG. 5a, is integrated to yield the foot velocity as a function of time (FIG. 5b). This velocity is averaged over several studies (three studies or cycles in this example) to yield the mean speed of travel shown as a straight line in FIG. 5c. The mean velocity of the walker/runner, over the given time interval, corresponds with the calculated mean horizontal foot velocity during the same time period.
Other gait parameters may also be easily derived from the measured data. These include, but are not limited to, stride rate, stride length, total distance traveled as well as angular velocities and accelerations.
As above described, the gait speedometer shown in FIG. 6 includes two linear accelerometers and an inclinometer or tilt sensor 16 all mounted on the ankle or shoe 10 in fixed relation to the datum plane defining surface or sole 11. The required characteristics of the accelerometers and inclinometer/tilt sensor will be described and specific prototype selections that have been tested or considered are listed below.
The transducers are mounted on the foot or shoe. It is necessary that they must not interfere or influence natural gait; this requires that they are small and lightweight.
The device may be battery powered; this requires that the primary components and associated circuits possess low-power consumption characteristics.
Human gait is a very low frequency phenomenon; the accelerometers used in thus device must be able to measure down to these frequencies.
The accelerometer transducer cluster is mounted on the foot or shoe and will thus be subjected to large impact forces and abuse. It is necessary that the accelerometers be rugged and durable to be able to survive in this environment.
The linearity, repeatability and noise levels must be such that the accuracy of measurement is acceptable for the application.
The accelerometers used in the development work of this invention are manufactured by Analog Devices (part no.'s ADXL50 and ADXL150/250). These accelerometers make use of micro-machining techniques to build the transducer into a silicon chip. This accounts for the small size, low power consumption and accuracy of the devices.
The invention described herein is not limited to the above mentioned accelerometer family. Other micro-machined accelerometers are currently produced or are under development by different manufacturers and could be considered for this purpose. As well, more conventional accelerometer technologies are candidates for this invention including strain-gauge and piezo-electric types.
The transducer is mounted on the foot or shoe. It is necessary that it must not interfere or influence natural gait; this requires that it be small and lightweight.
The device may be battery powered; this requires that the primary components and associated circuits possess low-power consumption characteristics.
The transducer cluster is mounted on the foot or shoe and will thus be subjected to large impact forces and abuse. It is necessary that the angle measurement device be rugged and durable to be able to survive in this environment.
The linearity, repeatability and noise levels must be such that the accuracy of measurement is acceptable for the application.
To be able to determine the foot angle, many approaches are possible. It is possible to measure the foot angle directly by means of a tilt sensor or other suitable device. It is possible to measure the foot's angular velocity by means of a rate gyro or other suitable device and then integrate the signal once to determine the foot angle. It is possible to measure the foot's angular acceleration by means of an angular rotation accelerometer or other suitable device and then integrate the signal twice to determine the foot angle.
Signal processing a pair of spaced parallel accelerometers to extract tilt information from the foot's angular acceleration, will be described in more detail herein below as it is the preferred system for determining the angle θ.
Full implementation of the gait speedometer includes signal measurement 20, signal conditioning 22 which includes processing components such as amplifiers, filters and signal processing 24. A signal path or flow diagram shown in FIG. 7 outlines the process. Signals emerge from the three primary transducers (normal and tangential accelerometers and inclinometer) and pass through signal conditions 22 which includes signal conditioning 26, by applying zero adjustments, gains, filters, etc. and analog to digital conversion 28. These signals from the accelerometers 12 and 14 are then combined using the angle θ to determine the net horizontal acceleration 34 from which the instantaneous foot velocity i.e. horizontal velocity 36 and mean velocity 38 may be determined.
Gait Parameter Calculation and Display
Once the instantaneous foot velocity has been determined 36, it may if desired be transmitted via a wireless transmitter/receiver pair 5, 6 or signal wires 4 to a calculation/display unit 3 (such as a wristwatch sized device, portable calculation device or desktop computer) to store and display various velocity parameters along with many other gait indicators (see FIG. 6).
A second embodiment of the invention is shown and will be described with reference to FIGS. 1A to 16A inclusive. Like reference numerals are used to indicate like parts in all embodiments.
Accelerometers are placed on the foot in essentially the same manner as described above so that normal accelerations, an, tangential accelerations, at, and angular accelerations, α, preferably about the intersection 104 of the tangential and normal acceleration vectors at and an respectively can be simultaneously measured (see FIG. 1A). The normal accelerometer measures 14 acceleration perpendicular to the base or sole 11 of the foot or shoe 10 which as above described provides the datum plane 100 defining surface 11 that defines the datum plane 100 for each stride when the sole 11 is at rest in the stance phase A of each stride. The tangential accelerometer 12 is sensitive to accelerations parallel to the base or sole 11 of the foot or shoe 10. The absolute direction of these accelerations vary continuously as the foot moves through a gait cycle. The measured angular acceleration is integrated twice to yield the foot angle θ. This angle θ is then used to resolve the normal and tangential accelerations into a net horizontal acceleration as shown in FIG. 2A. The horizontal acceleration is then integrated to find the velocity of the foot as a function of time. The subject's mean speed of travel is determined by averaging the foot velocity over an integer number of foot strides.
The term horizontal or net horizontal acceleration velocity etc. is used for convenience as though the vector is horizontal i.e. parallel with a horizontal datum plane 100. This vector will normally be parallel to the datum plane 100 and the plane of motion 104. It also will be apparent that these vectors may be resolved into any selected plane or direction i.e. horizontal, vertical or somewhere in between.
It was chosen to place accelerometers on the foot because the foot follows a regular pattern of acceleration and deceleration as the foot travels through the air and comes to rest on the ground for each stride as indicated by the segments A, B, C and D of the stride in FIG. 1. The small stationary period of time when the foot rests on the ground provides a useful point of reference for each stride and is used to define the datum plane 100 for each stride. With this method, each stride is independently measured and thus there is no accumulating error if the measurement were interconnected. It makes no assumptions regarding stride length, gait type (walking, jogging or running) and it accounts for the flight phase of a running gait.
Three accelerometers (two tangential 12A and 12B and a normal 14) are mounted on a small aluminum bracket 200 fastened via a leveling wing 202 by two screws 204 to the heel counter of a shoe 10 as shown in FIG. 3A. The upper and lower accelerometers 12A and 12B provide a pair of spaced substantially parallel accelerometers that measure tangential accelerations, while the middle normal accelerometer 14 measures the normal acceleration. The angular acceleration is determined by taking the difference of the accelerations generated by the upper and lower accelerometers divided by the distance between them (shown in FIG. 3A by the distance r). It is preferred that these accelerometers 12A and 12B be equally spaced from accelerometer 14, but this is not essential. The net tangential acceleration of the heel preferably is taken as the average of the upper and lower tangential accelerometers. This data is delivered to a computer 2 that then determines the acceleration, velocity and other information which may be delivered to the user, for example, by audio or visual means such as an earphone or digital or analogue visual display or any other suitable means schematically indicated at 3.
Suitable accelerometers are those made by Analog Devices (type ADXL50AH). The accelerometers were connected by shielded cables to a signal conditioning unit 26 which provided gain, zero offset adjustment, and anti-alias filtering etc. and then connected from an analog to a digital signal in converter 28 (see FIG. 15A).
Typical normal and tangential accelerations for strides (4 in this example) of a subject jogging at 3 m/s (7 mph) are shown in FIG. 4A. A close-up of a tangential signal from the first stride shown in FIG. 4A is shown in FIG. 5A. The initial sharp spike corresponds to heel strike. The flatter section of the signal in the segment immediately following impact, is the stance phase of the gait. The negative dip in the acceleration just after toe-off corresponds to the heel being raised as the knee flexes. The positive acceleration during the middle portion of the swing phase corresponds to the foot accelerating forward. During the latter portion of the swing phase, as the foot is slowed down in preparation for contact with the ground, there is a period of negative acceleration.
Stride beginning and ending locations were found from the impact spikes when the subject's foot struck the ground. An algorithm based on finding a local maximum after the acceleration crosses a variable threshold value was used to find the impact spikes. The heel decelerates to a low speed before striking the ground but does not actually reach zero velocity until just slightly after impact. A location of approximately 0.1 seconds after heel strike was chosen to denote the beginning of a stride since this is approximately where the foot velocity is zero. This position is used to determine the datum plane 100 which corresponds with the plane of the sole 11 at this point in time.
It is preferred to measure angular acceleration and then integrate twice to determine the foot angle θ. The measurement of the angular acceleration is accomplished by taking the difference between two parallel tangential accelerometers 12A and 12B.
After dividing the sequence into strides, the foot's angular position is determined. Coordinates are chosen so that the tilt is considered zero when the foot is in the zero velocity position i.e. the stance phase of the gait selected at 0.1 seconds after the heel strike i.e. a 0.1 second offset, and positive when the toe was pointed upwards as shown in FIG. 1A. The foot's angular acceleration is found by subtracting the upper tangential acceleration, at.sbsb.1, from the lower tangential acceleration, at.sbsb.2. The angular acceleration in radians/sec2, α, is calculated by dividing by the distance between the two accelerometers as indicated at 300 in FIG. 15A. ##EQU1##
The resulting angular acceleration, from the data shown in FIG. 4A, is shown in FIG. 6Aa. This data was then integrated using an accumulating sum and the resulting angular velocity, ω (in radians/sec) is shown in FIG. 6Ab. This result was once again integrated to produce the foot angle, θ, shown in FIG. 6Ac. Note how the very noisy and non-descript appearing signal in FIG. 6Aa is transformed into a very regular, smoothed function in FIG. 6Ac. Low frequency drift is evident in the foot angle signal.
A preferred method to convert drift is to first determine the mean angular acceleration αmean as indicated at 302 and to remove zero offset drift from α and ω by subtracting each signal's mean for each individual stride before integrating as indicated at 304 in FIG. 15A to define angular velocity ω.
The mean angular velocity ωmean is determined as indicated at 306 in FIG. 15A and then used to compute the angle θ as indicated at 308 and the position of the datum plane 100 using the offset θO (0.1 seconds) described above as indicated at 310.
FIG. 7A shows the foot angle θ that results from the zeroing and integrating method on the data from FIG. 6Aa (the zeroing and integrating is applied twice; once in the conversion of α to ω and once again in going from ω to θ). It is seen that it compares well with the independent θ from the infrared camera system that was used to film the subject.
Components of the tangential and normal acceleration are combined using the foot tilt angle θ to find the horizontal acceleration, ax. ##EQU2## From the measured acceleration data in FIG. 4A and the calculated foot angle shown in FIG. 7A, the resulting horizontal acceleration is shown in FIG. 8A. An integration of ax yields velocity νx parallel to plane 100 (or with appropriate changes any other selected direction) as a function of time, as shown in FIG. 9A. It is seen that this signal also has low frequency drift. To correct the drift, zero offset was removed from the net horizontal acceleration since the horizontal velocity is zero at the beginning and end of each cycle. FIG. 10A compares the velocities computed from the camera system and the velocities from using the zeroing and integrating algorithm on the acceleration data. Excellent agreement is seen in the form of the two curves. The final mean velocities agree to within a few percent.
A further improvement in results is usually achieved by using the assumption that the minimum foot velocity is zero. This suggests that if any part of the entire velocity curve dips below zero there has been some small error somewhere. If the error has not corrupted the shape of the curve, it can be corrected by simply shifting the entire curve up so that the new minimum is exactly zero.
Generally, when two parallel accelerometers are used to determine α, it is preferred to use the average of these two measurements to determine the mean, in this example the mean tangential acceleration, as indicated at 350 and generate a mean velocity as indicated by steps 34, 35, 36, and 38 described above and also shown in FIG. 15A.
For the sake of coherence, all of the figures that have been shown so far have been of the same trial, a 3 m/s jog. FIGS. 11A and 12A show the critical parameters, namely the foot angle, θ, and foot velocity, νx, for a 1.3 m/s walk, while FIGS. 13A and 14A show the same for a 3.8 m/s run respectively. In these figures, the calculated values from the method described herein are compared to video camera analysis of the same parameters. It is observed that there is excellent overall agreement between the foot angle and foot velocity for these cases.
FIG. 16A shows a controlled experiment where the speed of a treadmill was selectively increased and the jogging speed of the runner measured using the present invention. The stopped line shows treadmill speed while the other plot is the results using the present invention. It is apparent that the results obtained using the present invention correlate very well with the actual speeds of the treadmill.
It will be apparent that the invention may be used for many applications other than those described above including general kinematic measurements in one, two or three dimensions depending on the number and position of the accelerometers and angle measurement devices. Thus the invention may be used in robotic controls, linkage and trajectory analysis, for example. Clearly, the invention finds specific application in the biomedical field in prosthetics and as gait speedometers for walkers, runners or other athletes. Note that the use of this device is not limited to human applications.
A primary advantage of the described invention, is that all calculated gait parameters are available as function of time. This opens up a wide range of real-time post-processing possibilities for use in scientific analysis and control operations.
While the disclosure has described the accelerometers, etc. mounted on the counter of the shoe 10 they may be mounted at any appropriate location in fixed relation to the datum plane defining surface 11 or other such means. For example, they could be mounted to the shoe laces or pinned to the side of the shoe or built into the sole of the shoe.
Having described the invention, modifications will be evident to those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the invention as described above.
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|RU885897A *||Title not available|
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|U.S. Classification||73/490, 702/160, 73/510, 73/865.4|
|International Classification||G01P7/00, A61B5/22, A43B5/00, A61B5/11, G01C23/00, G01P15/18, G01P1/12, A61F2/76, A61B5/103, G01C22/00|
|Cooperative Classification||G01P1/127, A61F2002/7615, G01C22/006, A61F2002/764, A43B3/0005, A61B5/1038, G01P15/18|
|European Classification||A43B3/00E, G01P1/12C, A61B5/103P2, G01C22/00P, G01P15/18|
|Oct 14, 1997||AS||Assignment|
Owner name: ALBERTA, UNIVERSITY OF, CANADA
Free format text: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST;ASSIGNOR:FYFE, KENNETH RICHARD;REEL/FRAME:008775/0986
Effective date: 19971008
|Apr 29, 1999||AS||Assignment|
Owner name: FYFE, KENNETH R., CANADA
Free format text: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST;ASSIGNOR:GOVERNORS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF ALBERTA, THE;REEL/FRAME:009917/0339
Effective date: 19990324
|Mar 20, 2003||FPAY||Fee payment|
Year of fee payment: 4
|Apr 9, 2003||REMI||Maintenance fee reminder mailed|
|Dec 7, 2006||AS||Assignment|
Owner name: GARMIN LTD., CAYMAN ISLANDS
Free format text: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST;ASSIGNOR:FYFE, KENNETH;REEL/FRAME:018597/0139
Effective date: 20061207
|Feb 1, 2007||FPAY||Fee payment|
Year of fee payment: 8
|Dec 20, 2010||FPAY||Fee payment|
Year of fee payment: 12


July 24, 2012 – PlayUp, a New York-based developer of a sports-oriented social networking application, is releasing a dedicated Olympics version of the product PlayUp 3.1. The app will feature real-time results, standings, leaderboards, social discussion and other geographically targeted content. PlayUp also is adding third-party integration into the latest app version, allowing brands access into the product.
By Eric Fisher
Read the full story.
June 12, 2012 – If you’re looking for some fresh insight while watching Game 1 of the NBA Finals Tuesday night — or you’re just tired of talking the same old trash with your friends — feel free to whip out your phone and chat with an NBA star.
Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry will be chatting with fans during the Heat-Thunder game on PlayUp, a free app for iOS and Android that brings fans together for sporting events. The app is simple: You pick the game you’d like to chat about, and then join a chat room to talk with fans about that game.
By Zach McCann
Read The Full Story
June 12, 2012 – While LeBron James and Kevin Durant will be starring on the court during the NBA Finals, the Golden State Warriors’ Stephen Curry and the Milwaukee Bucks’ Brandon Jennings will be starring in the social media world.
PlayUp, the first social network app exclusively for sports fans, socializers and gamers, announced Tuesday that Curry and Jennings will be chatting with hoops fans during the first two games of the NBA Finals.
By Andrew Weber, US Presswire
Read the Full Story


text:
- "I got an enemy on my tail. Klaus, shift to support"
- ― Strigon Team member to Klaus
Klaus was an Estovakian Air Force fighter pilot assigned to the Central Forces Precinct 370th Air Aviation Regiment, 9th Tactical Fighter Squadron, Strigon Team.
It is unclear when Klaus joined the Strigon Team or which battles he took part in as his name is only heard spoken once throughout Ace Combat 6: Fires of Liberation. It is presumed that he participated in the invasion of Gracemeria.
At some point in his life, Klaus joined the Estovakian Air Force and was assigned to the Strigon Team.
During the assault on the Aerial Fleet, Klaus launched from the P-1112 Aigaion to defend the Aerial Fleet. In the ensuing battle, he was shot down by Emmerian Air Force aircraft.
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Heavy Command Cruiser, Ace Combat 6: Fires of Liberation
- ↑ Ace Combat 6: Fires of Liberation
- ↑ Invasion of Gracemeria, Ace Combat 6: Fires of Liberation

domain: history


text:
all you need is an internet connection either through your home or celluar service. You can get your workouts on your computer, iPad®, iPhone®, Android®, TV.
Naples, FL (PRWEB) November 01, 2012
With Hurricane Sandy expected to change many people's routines in the coming days, online fitness site XT Fitness offers an option for those who will be unable to make it to the gym. Coupon Code: SANDY2012 will allow people to sign up with a discounted rate of $5.00 for the first 30 days and offers full access to the library of online workout videos.
No matter where you are or what situation you find yourself in, you can access XT Fitness workouts – all you need is an internet connection either through your home or celluar service. You can get your workouts on your computer, iPad®, iPhone®, Android®, TV, and more. It’s easy to get access at your house, at the gym, or on the road – Workout with us anywhere, at any time!
XT50 is an advanced online fitness program designed for any age or fitness level and provides a gym quality workout with real results. Many fitness plans lead to "plateaus" where the body becomes accustomed to the routines, and sadly, diminishing results. Instead, XT50 provides a variety of fat-burning, muscle-perfecting exercises that continually challenge your body. You get maximum results with every workout. New cross training workout routines are posted every week and you have unlimited access to the entire library of online workout videos thru any internet connection.
The XT50 program is based on simplicity and ease of use for the end user. There are no journals, form or planners to fill out. Members simply workout 3-4 times a week by picking any workout from the library, and follow along at their own pace and intensity. Each session has a 10 minute warm up, 30 minute workout, and 10 minute cool down. Workouts are named after states in the U.S. and members are encouraged to complete all 50 on their own schedule.
The XT50 workout plan was developed by Jim Steffen of XT Fitness. Jim has appeared on Jay Leno, Live! with Regis and Kelly, ESPN's Sports Nation and numerous other outlets as America's Fun Fitness Coach and he regularly speaks to businesses, schools and organizations around the country about the importance of a good physical fitness workout pla n and how it improves everything in your life.
Additional details and contact information is available at http://crosstrainingandfitness.com

domain: sports


text:
Pain threshold in children, how to know the intensity of it
No father likes his son to have a bad time. Any illness in the little ones worries the parents. But the first step to remedy the situation is to recognize how serious it is. For this reason, several factors must be taken into account, such as the threshold of pain of the kids.
As indicated by the Spanish Association of Pediatrics, AEP, for a long time, it has not been given to pain the relevance and consideration that should have. The severity of many diseases is determined, among other factors, by this threshold. The estimation of the intensity of these sensations is important for both the patient and the doctor.
How to assess the pain threshold
AEP defines pain as an unpleasant emotional and sensitive experience associated with an injury to an area of the body. Pain is one of the most frequent causes of suffering in children suffering from a disease, although this is mild. Determining the threshold in children is not easy, especially in the youngest ones, since their perception can be influenced by many factors and at the same time communication with them is not easy.
When a child feels pain, their behavior usually changes and this offers clues, especially in younger children 7 years, since they are not able to adequately communicate this feeling. Some behaviors that can indicate that a child feels pain are: unexplained crying or whining, less activity, rejection of food, seeking contact with parents more than usual, who repeatedly takes the hand to some part of their body , hold it, or let the child avoid rubbing a part of his body with nothing else.
It is also important to consider how a difficult situation affects your usual activity, such as playing in the park or at home, playing sports, going to school, etc. According to age, the type of pain and the situation, the professionals health professionals use different scales composed of colors, numbers or drawings to try to quantify the intensity of pain. Choosing which one to use is not as important as knowing how to apply it. There are two types of scales that are used according to the patient's age: subjective and objective.
The pain threshold is assessed by the attitudes and behavior of the children:
Level 0. No particular expression, without smile, disinterested.
Level 1. Occasional grimace or frown. Reserved.
Level 2. Frown frequently or steadily, jaw clenched, chin trembling.
Level 0. Normal or relaxed position.
Level 1. Intranquil, restless, tense.
Level 2. Kick, lower and raise your legs.
Level 0. Lying calm, in a normal position, moves easily.
Level 1. Squirms, changes posture, tense.
Level 2. Arches, is stiff, or shakes.
Level 0. He does not cry (neither when he is awake, nor when he is asleep).
Level 1. Moans or whines, complains from time to time.
Level 2. Constant crying, screaming or sobbing, frequent complaints.
- Ability to feel relief or comfort:
Level 0. Happy, relaxed.
Level 1. Calms down when you touch him, lull him or talk to him. He can be distracted.
Level 2. Difficulty to comfort or comfort you.
The subjective scales are easier to interpret, since it is the child who tells us what hurts, where, for how long and all that translates into numbers, colors or drawings. They can only be used in older children, with the ability to understand and express themselves better. For older children 5 years Scales are used with drawings of faces that represent different intensities of pain and the child chooses the one that most resembles how it hurts. Being the number 0 no pain and the number 10 the greatest possible pain.


It’s no longer critical for churches to just have a website. Now, with the increased penetration of smartphone usage, churches now need websites that adapt to mobile environments (such as smartphones and tablets) as well as mobile apps. And because European countries are leading the way in smartphone penetration rates, European churches need to sit up and take notice.
According to a report issued by eMarketer, “Europe is projected to dominate global smartphone penetration by 2017. Seven of the top 10 countries are expected to be in Europe. They are (in order): Norway, Denmark, The Netherlands, Sweden, Finland, the United Kingdom and Germany. ”
In the blog post below, Matt McKee, CEO of ROAR, outlines 21 reasons your church or ministry needs a mobile app. To read, click here:


Kyoto University Integrated Network System (KUINS)
- Information about the whole service
- Application for using KUINS network
- Information socket with Web authentication
- The application for server certificate
- Application of the Subdomain
- Application for Wireless LAN access point
- The application of KUINS-II subnet
- Application for the connection to the remote place
- The use of P2P type file exchange software
- Application for the connection to SINET
- On-campus Network(KUINS)
- Connection to Off-campus Network Services
- Wireless LAN
- Kyoto University Integrated Network System (KUINS)
- Connection from Off-campus
Connection from Off-campus
The methods to connect to the network(limited on-campus) are mainly as follows.
These services enable users to set the off-campus(home,workplace etc) network make the connection environment of standard KUINS-III(on-campus use) CLOSE space setting VLAN. And you can access to online service provided to limited on-campus (browsing e-journals, use of Groupware) safely.
To use this service, "ECS-ID" or "SPS-ID" is required.


text:
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Scheduled for 9/26!
3+ weeks before surgery, and counting.
how exciting, knowing you will have a
new life with improved health and happiness.
good luck bud - kathy
Bariatric Surgeons: Want to research a weight loss surgery surgeon? Enter their last name below to start!

domain: medical


text:
The community of Sterling Virginia offers a perfect location for anyone who will be doing a lot of travel via the Washington Dulles Airport. You can drive down Route 28 and be there in minutes. It will take you about 45 minutes to drive to Washington DC from Sterling. There are some Virginia Transit bus stops that will take you to many top destinations in the area.
Within a short radius of Sterling you will find offices for many large corporations, higher education opportunities and lots of retail shops. A few of the significant places near Sterling include:
• Northern Virginia Community College (on Leesburg Pike) • The Virginia Campus of George Washington University • Dulles Technology Corridor (Microsoft, Oracle, Verisign) • Orbital Science - off Atlantic Boulevard
One place you might enjoy getting some exercise is the Washington and Old Dominion Trail which passes through the center of Sterling. For an afternoon of recreation, head over to Claude Moore Park which has a fitness center, swimming pool and 357 acres to explore. If you plan to have guests at your Sterling apartment and want to impress them with a nice meal, the Wegmans market at the Dulles Center should have everything you need.
Be sure to join the 8,000 residents who converge on Sterling Park for the annual SterlingFest, an event that features food and craft vendors, rides, local musicians and children's activities.
A post office in Sterling is located at 150 South Sterling Boulevard. The phone number is 703-444-3163.
Average Rent in Sterling, VA
The following chart shows the average rent for an apartment in Sterling, VA and nearby cities:

domain: geography


text:
if the child was shocked tooth in Vietnam , what they know must give you how to deal with and how to deal with events occurring during and after the healing time. The physician and the restorative dentist will be responsible for you in the event that your teeth are removed if the reason for the removal is due to poor repair skills. At that time, you will be remedied at no cost and implants at a minimum or no fee under the condition of errors made by the doctor during implant prosthetic implant. To overcome the graft situation Implant is eliminated need to deploy specific positions why so. There are even the following occurrences Because the tooth posture is not compatible with the jaw Due to high levels of materials that cause bones, inflammation Because the bone itself is too weak, the bone is not enough to retain the crown
With implant implants All on 4 or 6, the patient will save the maximum cost, and have beautiful teeth to eat chewing as well as comfortable in communication.
This method has the following advantages: Saigon Vietnam dental implants
– Orthodontics is fast, beautiful, effective, suitable for all subjects, including the elderly.
– Minimize the bone graft surgery, sinus lift.
– Do not cause pain to the patient, do not affect health.
– The number of implant cylinders is set to minimum, so surgery is gentle, invasive narrow, less shock.
– Maximum cost savings. vietnam dentist prices
Implant procedure All on 4 and All on 6
Learn about Implant Teeth Implant All on 4 and All on 6
Step 1: Examination, counseling and X-ray to accurately determine the status of the patient’s teeth to choose the appropriate method.
Step 2: Place the implant in the proper position. Depending on the method chosen by the patient, the doctor implanted 4 or 6 implant cylinders into the jawbone.
Step 3: Restore the denture on the implant. nha khoa ident
Step 4: Re-examination. Once the transplant procedure has been completed, the patient is scheduled for a follow-up visit by the doctor to check the compatibility of the implant as well as the entire dental health of the patient after the implant.
After implantation with All on 4 or All on 6, the patient can resume normal activities. However, in order to keep the teeth healthy, patients should pay attention to fasting hard, tough, cold, hot … as well as oral hygiene is clean every day. nha khoa trồng răng implant


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