Predicting ankle and knee sagittal kinematics and kinetics using an ankle-mounted inertial sensor

Predicting Tissue Loads in Running from Inertial Measurement Units

BACKGROUND

Runners have high incidence of repetitive load injuries, and habitual runners often use smartwatches with embedded IMU sensors to track their performance and training. If accelerometer information from such IMUs can provide information about individual tissue loads, then running watches may be used to prevent injuries.

METHODS

We investigate a combined physics-based simulation and data-based method. A total of 285 running trials from 76 real runners are subjected to physics-based simulation to recover forces in the Achilles tendon and patella ligament, and the collected data are used to train and test a data-based model using elastic net and gradient boosting methods.

RESULTS

Correlations of up to 0.95 and 0.71 for the patella ligament and Achilles tendon forces, respectively, are obtained, but no single best predictive algorithm can be identified.

CONCLUSIONS

Prediction of tissues loads based on body-mounted IMUs appears promising but requires further investigation before deployment as a general option for users of running watches to reduce running-related injuries.