Low-cost electromyography: validity against a commercial system depends on exercise type and intensity

Abstract

The aim of this study was to assess the validity of a custom-made low cost (LC) and a commercial surface EMG apparatus in controlled experimental conditions and different exercise types: maximal voluntary contractions (MVC) at 105, 90, 75, 60, 45 and 30° knee angle and explosive fix-end contractions of the knee extensors (75°) at an isometric dynamometer. sEMG of vastus lateralis was recorded from the same electrodes simultaneously, then analyzed in the same way; sEMG were finally expressed in percentage of those collected at 75°MVC. LC underestimated the sEMG signal at the more extended knee angles (30-60°), significant difference was observed only at 30°. In the explosive contractions no differences between devices were observed in average and peak sEMG, as well as in the time to peak and the activation time. Bland-Altman tests and correlation parameters indicate the LC device is not sensible enough to detect the time to peak and the peak values of the sEMG signal properly. Results suggest low-cost systems might be a valid alternative to commercial ones, but attention must be paid when analyzing rapid events.

Emergence of integrated biosensing-enabled digital healthcare devices

“…Electrochemical platforms, low-cost electromyography, non-invasive wearables for HbA1c and glucose etc., are used for biomarker sensing and commercialization. [175][176][177][178] Health management schedules for oral wearable sensors, stretchable strain sensors for joint motion and respiration monitoring, finger-based pulse oximeters, glucose monitoring systems among adults with type 2 diabetes, bipolar disorder treatment systems etc., have become standard elements of intensive care and follow-up plans. [179][180][181][182][183] Table 6 outlines some health management advances in the biosensing field based on device development.…”

“…[179][180][181][182][183] Table 6 outlines some health management advances in the biosensing field based on device development. [175][176][177][178][179][180][181][182][183] Research progress has led to the conclusion that today's and future materials advances, optimizing the industrial structure, and building a modern environmental governance system integrating modern technologies (AI, IoT, cloud etc.) can help progress toward achieving global sustainability (Fig.…”

Development of Consumer-Friendly Surface Electromyography System for Muscle Fatigue Detection

“…For specialized board infrastructure for EMG measurement, the MyoWare [5], [21], the Arduino board [3], [22], [23], and the BITalino [24] have often been used. Heywood et al [21] used MyoWare board and incorporated an Analog Device operational amplifier.…”

“…They reported correlation coefficients of 0.65-0.99, indicating moderate-tohigh relative agreement with those of commercial system. Tecchino et al [23] built a low-cost EMG system with an Arduino Uno ethernet board and an integrated signal conditioning block for biological signals. This system saved data automatically in a secure digital card, and postprocess analysis was done by MATLAB on a PC.…”

Classification of Electromyography Signal of Diabetes using Artificial Neural Networks

“…Some disadvantages of EMG include the complexity of data processing and the expense of the equipment [6]. Not many hospitals routinely do EMG analysis because commercially available equipment costs range from € 15.000 to € 20.000 [7].…”