An interactive environment for motor unit potential classification using certainty-based classifiers

An interactive environment for performing the motor unit potential (MUP) classification tasks required for electromyographic (EMG) signal decomposition is described and developed utilizing the MATLAB high-level programming language and its interactive environment. Certainty-based classification approach had been employed for the classification task in which the assignment criterion used for MUPs is based on a combination of MUP shapes and motor unit firing pattern information. The environment software package consists of several graphical user interfaces used to detect individual MUP waveforms from a raw EMG signal, extract relevant features, and classify the MUPs into motor unit potential trains (MUPTs) using certainty-based classifiers. The development of the proposed software package is useful at enhancing the analysis quality and providing a systematic approach to the EMG signal decomposition process.