Design of a multi-sensor walking boot to quantify the forefoot rocker motion as a function of walking speed.

Abstract

In this study, we designed a wearable multi-sensor walking boot to measure foot angular momentum and introduced a novel method to quantify forefoot rocker motion as a function of walking speed. A treadmill walking experiment was conducted with eight healthy subjects wearing the multi-sensor walking boot. Using the collected data, we calculated foot angular momentum and the average rate of change in angular momentum during the double support phase. In addition, we used linear regression analysis to quantify foot rotation patterns across increasing walking speeds, assessing the potential of this method as a walking indicator. The results demonstrated that the foot rotation pattern in the healthy group was characterized by a gradual scaling of angular momentum and its average rate of change, with strong correlations to walking speed. Based on these findings, we conclude that the proposed method for quantifying forefoot rocker motion relative to walking speed can serve as an effective indicator of normal walking.