Parkinsonian Axial Movement Capture using Wearable Sensors during the Pull Test

Abstract

The aim of this research was to analyse the characteristic movements of patients with Parkinsons disease (PD) during the pull test. In this experiment, flexibility of participants were measured from two wearable sensors attached on their upper and lower back. In particular, as Bradykinesia and axial Bradykinesia are vital characteristics which are challenging to measure, we designed a test system engaging a minimal number of wearable sensors to capture the characteristic movements of the back. We utilised a time delay between two sensors to analyse rigidity of human back. In order to measure the characteristics of patient and control groups, the principal component analysis (PCA) was applied to extract the significant features to distinguish the two groups. Consequently, their differences were shown in PCA with a satisfactory separation of controls and patients.