Project - Analyzing Gait Biomechanics through Animation
One of the most rewarding experiences during my senior year of bioengineering was analyzing human movement dynamics in my Biomechanics 3 class.
Throughout the course, I learned to analyze movement through the use of Euler angles and Transformation/Rotation Matrices. At the end of the class, we were given a task to work with the Human Movement and Balance Laboratory to collect motion data of our choosing. Using the state of the art Vicon motion capture system in the lab, my team collected data of a subject walking before and after becoming dizzy.
I wanted to bring our project one step further. I sought to portray the local coordinate systems of the thigh and shank during gait using an animation. Utilizing Matlab and the transformation matrices we developed using the motion capture data, I was able to render the gait motion successfully. The local coordinate systems of the thigh and shank in the video show the translation and rotations about the x, y, and z axis.
In the attached video, it is plain to see that the subject has a much harder time walking in a straight line after becoming dizzy. If the subject were to have been more dizzy, the effects may have been intensified.
Animations such as these pay tribute to the fact that an image is worth a thousand words. This video depicts the transformation and rotation matrices I’ve been learning in class in an easy way to understand. I am grateful for all the incredible skills I have learned through this course!
