Measuring uniaxial joint angles with a minimal accelerometer configuration

Abstract

This paper describes an approach to accurate measurement of human joint flexion-extension angles with four biaxial accelerometers. In this method, the absolute joint angle is calculated by comparing the readings of a pair of virtual accelerometers at the joint center of rotation. The simulation results show that the measurement has high accuracy compared to the reference system (correlation coefficient factor = 0.982). Given its portability, relative low cost and high accuracy proven by simulation results, the system can be applied to motion tracking for home-based rehabilitation.