A solid-state ambulatory physical activity monitor and its application to measuring daily activity of the elderly

Abstract

An ambulatory acceleration monitor was developed and used to evaluate physical activity in the elderly. The ECG and accelerations at the wrist, waist, and ankle were recorded, and the heart rate and frequency and amplitude of accelerations per unit time were evaluated in both working and retired elderly women performing normal daily activities. The heart rate closely paralleled wrist acceleration. The behaviour patterns of the subjects could be differentiated by time interval signals and histogram distributions. This system appears to be an effective method of understanding and describing the characteristic activities of the elderly in a quantitative and objective fashion.

Quantification of physical activities by means of ambulatory accelerometry: A validation study

“…Most of the currently available actometers are based on the principle of variability of the accelerometer signal. These actometers are generally attached to the human body at the wrist, the ankle, or the waist~Klesges et al Montoye & Taylor, 1984;Patterson et al, 1993;Tamura et al, 1997!. The simultaneous use at different locations of three or four accelerometers in our instrument may give more precise and reliable information regarding motility, as was also suggested by Patterson et al~1993!. Motility variables can be calculated for all sensors separately, or can be combined to indicate total bodily motility.…”

Classifying household and locomotive activities using a triaxial accelerometer

“…While mainly the lower limbs move during locomotive activities such as walking and jogging, movement of the arms while lifting and pushing accompany household activities. Therefore, some researchers have attempted to classify and quantify the different types of physical activities using both trunk acceleration and wrist acceleration [25][26][27]. However, using multiple sensors can have disadvantages such as increased monetary cost and reduced convenience.…”

Improved Physical Activity in Patients Treated for Chronic Pain by Spinal Cord Stimulation

“…Although comprehensive assessment of physical activity became possible with more sophisticated measuring equipment (24,38,39), none of these studies reported a detailed analysis of the gait parameters.…”