Gamified IMU Sensor-Based System for Training Head-Orientation Tasks in Healthy Teenagers: Event-Driven Architecture and Randomised Pilot Feasibility Study.

Abstract

Sensor systems integrated with gamified environments have increasingly been incorporated into the monitoring of musculoskeletal disorders. This study evaluates the operational feasibility of a motion-capture system based on an inertial measurement unit for training head-orientation tasks. Because a single sensor is placed on the head without thoracic fixation, the system estimates head orientation relative to space rather than isolated cervical motion. The event-driven architecture is organised into five logical layers and uses an asynchronous publish-subscribe bus for data acquisition, sensor fusion through the Madgwick filter, and local rendering in WebGL. A randomised pilot study involving 22 teenagers allocated to two parallel groups (11 per group) was conducted over eight weeks (three sessions per week). Participants were assigned to either the gamified system or a comparable active cervical exercise program. No participant-reported connectivity or hardware events prevented session completion. Self-reported adherence was 100%, and no adverse events were reported. Exploratory analyses showed that both groups reduced task completion time, whereas the reduction in time spent outside the target trajectory was statistically significant only in the experimental group; the between-group comparison of pre-post changes was not statistically significant. These findings indicate the system's operational feasibility in healthy teenagers.