Human Movement Analysis

Dear Colleagues,

Human movement analysis has become very popular in different domains, such as clinical gait analysis, rehabilitation, robotics, sports science, animation and entertainment, video surveillance, and smart houses. The challenge for healthcare professionals, sports biomechanists, and researchers is to study the mechanics of motion and their correlation with various pathologies and/or injuries affecting the musculoskeletal system in less-constrained environments beyond laboratory settings. Recently, there has been great emphasis on the application and development of different sensors and, in particular, wearable sensing technologies that offer exciting opportunities for the continuous monitoring of human kinematics and kinetics in free-living conditions. The aim of this Topic Collection is to present recent findings on the development and application of sensor technologies for measurements of human movement.

In particular, this Topic Collection will report on various sensors, such as video recording sensors, IMU (inertial measurement units) plantar pressure sensors, and electromyography. Authors are encouraged to submit manuscripts for publication in (but not limited to) the following areas:

• Biomechanical sensors in disease assessment, functional diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation;
• Sensors for movement analysis for assisted living monitoring;
• Biomechanical sensors in gait analysis;
• Biomechanical sensors in sports;
• Movement analysis through dynamic electromyography;
• Plantar pressure analysis and gaitography;
• Magneto-inertial sensors for human motion tracking;
• Force sensors (strain gauge, piezo, etc.);
• Ultrasound sensors for human movement analysis;
• Goniometers;
• Optical tracking systems;
• Challenges in data processing, simulation, and validation for human movement analysis;
• Challenges in data sensor fusion for human movement analysis;
• Technical challenges in assuring the accuracy and robustness of the provided measures (i.e., sensor placement, measurement drift, repeatability of the provided measures);
• Wireless sensors for human motion tracking;
• Movement analysis and brain activity through mobile assessment (EEG, fNIRS,…)
• Novel applications in the continuous monitoring of human motion in rehabilitation;
• Measuring biomechanics of either the whole body or individual parts of the body.

Dr. Zimi Sawacha
Dr. Giuseppe Vannozzi
Dr. Andrea Merlo
Topic Editors