MHRA and NHS PASA Publications Update |
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Authors: | Joseph M. Mahoney Zackery E. Scalyer Matthew B. Rhudy |
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Affiliation: | 1. Department of Mechanical Engineering, The Pennsylvania State University, Reading, PA, USA;2. jmm694@psu.edu;4. Department of Kinesiology, The Pennsylvania State University, Reading, PA, USA |
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Abstract: | AbstractBackground: Reliable step counting is a critical part of locomotion research. Current counting methods can be inaccurate, time consuming, expensive or encumbering to the subject. Here, we present a camera-based optical method for automatically counting steps.Methods: Fifteen healthy adults walked, jogged and ran on a treadmill at three different constant speeds (1.21, 2.01, 2.68?m/s) and once at varying speed (1.21–2.68 m/s) for 90?s. Subjects had visual marker affixed to their left foot while walking. Video was recorded synchronously at low- and high-resolution during trials. The step count found manually from the video was compared to an automated video analysis system using the two configurations of the optical system.Results: Bland–Altman plots, Intra-class correlation coefficients (ICC) and relative error comparison were used for quantitative assessment of device reliability. Reliability of optical method was high (ICC ≥0.98).Conclusions: The method produces accurate step count results for the range of speeds tested. They use customisable open-source software and off-the-shelf hardware. The method has a low cost of implementation compared to many consumer products and grants researchers access to the raw sensor data. |
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Keywords: | Gait walking running pedometry motion analysis |
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