Kinematic Quantification of Gait Asymmetry Based on Characteristics of Angle-Angle Diagrams

Abstract

Our work focuses on studying gait symmetry with the use of bilateral angle-angle diagrams. The geometric characteristics of angle-angle diagrams can be used to characterize gait, as well as, identify and quantify the associated gait asymmetry. The angle-angle diagrams were created for ten patients with leg length inequality (LLI), to quantify gait symmetry before and after an application of the heel lift. In order to quantify the symmetry of human walking, we have invented and used the characteristics of an angleangle diagram, which represent the evolution of the two joint angles, i.e. left and right knee angles or left and right hip angles. The novel methods are based on the area of the convex hull of the hip-hip diagram or knee-knee diagram, and can be used as an additional method for the determination of gait symmetry of the bipedal walking of human subjects or robots. Our method is not limited to gait studies, it can also be used to study arm swing symmetry.