A novel multi-sensor system for gait assessment in real-world conditions: preliminary results

Gait analysis is commonly performed in controlled environments. However, there is a growing interest in methods assessing motor performance in free-living conditions. Inertial measurement units (IMU) constitute a valid solution in the estimation of spatio-temporal gait parameters. However, performance of IMU-based methods is influenced by several factors and their validation in free-living conditions calls for a mobile gold standard as reference. To this end, the present study deals with the validation of a wearable multi-sensor system (INDIP) for digital gait assessment in free-living conditions. The INDIP integrates four magneto-inertial units, two distance sensors and two pressure insoles. Since its validation is on-going, preliminary outcomes obtained for two tasks from lab-based acquisitions on one healthy subject are presented and discussed. Results show low percentage errors (always <5%) and hopefully will be confirmed on more subjects and more complex tasks.