Simple gait assessment system

Continuous monitoring and frequent measuring of a patientʹs gait is essential for efficient rehabilitation so that corrective training measures can be adopted throughout the rehabilitation process. Important parameters in gait evaluation are the instantaneous horizontal velocity of the center of gravity (COG) and the overall distance covered. We describe a simple gait assessment system based on combined ultrasound (US) and infra red light (IR) distance/velocity measuring device. The device achieves 0.5% static accuracy within a 10 m range at 25 Hz sampling rate. The system functionality and feasibility was verified in two types of walking: normal gait and functional electrical stimulation (FES) assisted paraplegic gait.