Department of Computer and Information Sciences, Northumbria University, Newcastle-upon-Tyne NE1 8ST, UK.
Department of Health and Life Sciences, Northumbria University, Newcastle-upon-Tyne NE1 8ST, UK.
Sensors (Basel). 2023 Apr 19;23(8):4100. doi: 10.3390/s23084100.
Walking/gait quality is a useful clinical tool to assess general health and is now broadly described as the sixth vital sign. This has been mediated by advances in sensing technology, including instrumented walkways and three-dimensional motion capture. However, it is wearable technology innovation that has spawned the highest growth in instrumented gait assessment due to the capabilities for monitoring within and beyond the laboratory. Specifically, instrumented gait assessment with wearable inertial measurement units (IMUs) has provided more readily deployable devices for use in any environment. Contemporary IMU-based gait assessment research has shown evidence of the robust quantifying of important clinical gait outcomes in, e.g., neurological disorders to gather more insightful habitual data in the home and community, given the relatively low cost and portability of IMUs. The aim of this narrative review is to describe the ongoing research regarding the need to move gait assessment out of bespoke settings into habitual environments and to consider the shortcomings and inefficiencies that are common within the field. Accordingly, we broadly explore how the Internet of Things (IoT) could better enable routine gait assessment beyond bespoke settings. As IMU-based wearables and algorithms mature in their corroboration with alternate technologies, such as computer vision, edge computing, and pose estimation, the role of IoT communication will enable new opportunities for remote gait assessment.
行走/步态质量是评估整体健康状况的有用临床工具，现在被广泛描述为第六大生命体征。这是通过传感技术的进步实现的，包括仪器化步道和三维运动捕捉。然而，正是可穿戴技术的创新催生了仪器步态评估的最高增长，因为它具有在实验室内外进行监测的能力。具体来说，带可穿戴惯性测量单元 (IMU) 的仪器步态评估为在任何环境中使用提供了更易于部署的设备。基于当代 IMU 的步态评估研究表明，在神经障碍等情况下，能够稳健地量化重要的临床步态结果，从而在家庭和社区中获得更有洞察力的习惯数据，因为 IMU 的成本相对较低且便携。本叙述性评论的目的是描述正在进行的研究，即需要将步态评估从定制环境转移到习惯环境，并考虑该领域中常见的缺点和效率低下。因此，我们广泛探讨了物联网 (IoT) 如何能够更好地在定制环境之外实现常规步态评估。随着基于 IMU 的可穿戴设备和算法在与计算机视觉、边缘计算和姿势估计等替代技术的协同作用方面的成熟，IoT 通信的作用将为远程步态评估带来新的机会。
