Electronic device for gait analysis

Abstract

In order to automate the determination of gait parameters, a system capable of acquiring data from inertial units, exploiting their maximum sampling frequency, was developed. The study of gait is one of the fundamental indicators for the evaluation of physical performance. It allows the estimation of the functional deterioration of the elderly in an objective way, so several tests have been designed to evaluate it. The system developed has two fundamental elements: an electronic device and a desktop application. The electronic device has the function of collecting data from the MPU-9255 sensor using an ESP32 to set the sampling rate, transmitting the data via WiFi to the computer and monitoring the system’s battery. The desktop application allows the electronic device to be configured and controlled, as well as receiving, displaying and storing the data. As a result, a prototype capable of operating at a sampling frequency of 1 kHz was built. Tests carried out on the system demonstrate its reliability and allow the limits of sampling frequency and working distance to be set.