Nonlinear stochastic system identification of skin using volterra kernels.

Volterra kernel stochastic system identification is a technique that can be used to capture and model nonlinear dynamics in biological systems, including the nonlinear properties of skin during indentation. A high bandwidth and high stroke Lorentz force linear actuator system was developed and used to test the mechanical properties of bulk skin and underlying tissue in vivo using a non-white input force and measuring an output position. These short tests (5 s) were conducted in an indentation configuration normal to the skin surface and in an extension configuration tangent to the skin surface. Volterra kernel solution methods were used including a fast least squares procedure and an orthogonalization solution method. The practical modifications, such as frequency domain filtering, necessary for working with low-pass filtered inputs are also described. A simple linear stochastic system identification technique had a variance accounted for (VAF) of less than 75%. Representations using the first and second Volterra kernels had a much higher VAF (90-97%) as well as a lower Akaike information criteria (AICc) indicating that the Volterra kernel models were more efficient. The experimental second Volterra kernel matches well with results from a dynamic-parameter nonlinearity model with fixed mass as a function of depth as well as stiffness and damping that increase with depth into the skin. A study with 16 subjects showed that the kernel peak values have mean coefficients of variation (CV) that ranged from 3 to 8% and showed that the kernel principal components were correlated with location on the body, subject mass, body mass index (BMI), and gender. These fast and robust methods for Volterra kernel stochastic system identification can be applied to the characterization of biological tissues, diagnosis of skin diseases, and determination of consumer product efficacy.