NHMRC Centre of Clinical Research Excellence – Gait Analysis & Gait Rehabilitation
Realistic computer simulations of human movement can play a pivotal role in healthcare through patient rehabilitation; in sports, through the development of personalized training programs for elite athletes; and in entertainment, through the creation of video games and animated films.
Working out how individual muscle actions contribute to the overall movement of the body requires advanced computational biomechanics.
Engineers develop models to run on ordinary desktop computers to determine the function of individual muscles – analysing real people.
Another study is investigating the function of individual muscles at different speeds. Most existing studies look at walking at normal speed. The research will also examine how walking patterns change as people walk faster. This will help determine the speed at which people choose to start running.
In a related development, researchers are changing the view angle when analysing muscle behaviour. The new research looks at the coronal plane (as if looking from the front) as well as the typical sagittal plane (side view).
X-rays (fluoroscopy) are also being tested as a way to enhance the measurement of knee joint movement. Most gait analysis systems are based on measuring the position of markers placed on the skin, which can compromise accuracy as the skin moves. This is a major issue for conditions like osteoarthritis in the knee, where bone movements of less than a millimetre can have a profound influence.
Contact:
Professor Marcus Pandy's research interests are in biomechanics and control of human movement. Much of his research is aimed at using computer models of the human body to study muscle, ligament, and joint function in the normal, injured, and diseased states.
Professor Marcus Pandy
Melbourne School of Engineering
University of Melboune Vic 3010 Australia
Ph: 8344 4054
pandym@unimelb.edu.au
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