Measurement of lower limb joint angle during gait in the sagittal plane with wearable system and its impact on foot loading during walking

The purpose of this study was first, to propose a wearable system for measurement of lower limb joint angle during gait in the sagittal plane. Second, we investigated the impact of the construction's stiffness on human gait. The system consists of such elements as: mechanical construction, absolute measurement angular transducer, portable PC computer, and power system. The impact of the construction's stiffness on human gait was evaluated using pedobarograph. Ten typical subjects randomly selected from Bialystok University of Technology. The advantage of the proposed system is possibility of it's using outside regular laboratory. Our results results show that the proposed measurement system doesn't restrict the maximal displacement of ranges in lower limbs joints. The results show the reduction in magnitude of plantar pressure distribution under the toes during when subject wearing the measurement system. However under the heel the magnitude of plantar pressure distribution is higher when subject wearing the measurement system.