[Lab Meeting] June 30th, 2008 (Ekker) :Intelligent Shoes for Abnormal Gait Detection

Intelligent Shoes for Abnormal Gait Detection
Meng Chen, Bufu Huang, and Yangsheng Xu
2008 IEEE International Conference on
Robotics and Automation
Pasadena, CA, USA, May 19-23, 2008

Abstract—In this paper we introduce a shoe-integrated
system for human abnormal gait detection. This intelligent
system focuses on detecting the following patterns: normal gait,
toe in, toe out, oversupination, and heel walking gait abnormalities.
An inertial measurement unit (IMU) consisting of
three-dimensional gyroscopes and accelerometers is employed
to measure angular velocities and accelerations of the foot. Four
force sensing resistors (FSRs) and one bend sensor are installed
on the insole of each foot for force and flexion information
acquisition. The proposed detection method is mainly based
on Principal Component Analysis (PCA) for feature generation
and Support Vector Machine (SVM) for multi-pattern
classification. In the present study, four subjects tested the
shoe-integrated device in outdoor environments. Experimental
results demonstrate that the proposed approach is robust and
efficient in detecting abnormal gait patterns. Our goal is to
provide a cost-effective system for detecting gait abnormalities
in order to assist persons with abnormal gaits in the developing
of a normal walking pattern in their daily life.