EP-4742260-A1 - A METHOD AND A SYSTEM FOR REAL-TIME MOVEMENT AND PERFORMANCE ANALYSES FOR A HUMAN

EP4742260A1EP 4742260 A1EP4742260 A1EP 4742260A1EP-4742260-A1

Abstract

The present invention relates to a method and a system for real-time movement and performance analysis for a human using an external computer system and at least one wireless mobile monitoring device, where the monitoring device measures articular angle and/or muscular activity of an object part while the human moves the object part in accordance with pre-defined moving instructions. By processing this data, a real-time movement performance analysis indicator may be calculated indicating if the muscular activity for the muscular object is as expected or not.

Inventors

THORGILSSON, BALDUR

Assignees

Kiso ehf.

Dates

Publication Date: 20260513
Application Date: 20241106

Claims (15)

A system (100) for real-time movement and performance analysis for a human (102, 302), comprising: • at least one wireless mobile monitoring device (101) configured to be placed on an object part of the human, comprising: ∘ a communication module (104), ∘ an orientation sensor (106), and/or ∘ a muscular activity sensor (105), • a computer system configured to present pre-stored moving instructions to the human, where the orientation sensor and/or the muscular activity sensor is/are configured to acquire articular angle data and/or muscular activity data of the object part while the human moves the object part in accordance with the moving instructions, where the articular angle position data and/or the muscular activity data (113) is/are communicated by the communication module to the computer system where the data is processed, where the processing includes comparing the received articular angle position data and/or the muscular activity data with reference data and determining a real-time movement and performance analysis indicator for the object part.
The system according to claim 1, wherein the computer system comprises a computer device comprising a device receiver, a display and a device processor for controlling the device receiver and the display, where the device receiver is configured for receiving the data communicated by the communication module and where the display is configured to display the moving instructions via the display.
The system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the computer system further comprises a computer platform comprising a platform memory, a platform transceiver and a platform processor for controlling the platform memory and the platform transmitter, where the moving instructions are stored by the platform memory, and where the platform processor is configured to instruct the platform transceiver to transmit the stored moving instructions to the computer device where the moving instructions are stored in a device memory comprised in the computer device or displayed in real-time at the computer device via the display.
The system according to any of the preceding claims, wherein orientation sensor comprises an Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) sensor or Magnetic Angular Rate and Gravity (MARG) sensor.
The system according to any of the preceding claims, wherein muscular activity sensor comprises a Electromyography (EMG) sensor.
The system according to any of the claims 2 to 5, wherein processing the articular angle position data and/or the muscular activity data (113) includes processing both the articular angle position data and the muscular activity data, where the processing is performed by a device processor comprised in the wireless mobile monitoring device(s) or by the platform processor, where the processing comprises: ∘ utilizing the articular angle data to align the muscular activity data with corresponding muscular activity reference data (114) for each acquired articular angle position measured by the orientation sensor, and ∘ utilizing the resulting muscular activity data pair for each acquired articular angle position measured by the orientation sensor in calculating the real-time movement and performance analysis indicator (120) for the muscular object part.
A method of real-time movement and performance analysis for a human, where the method comprises: • providing a pre-stored moving instructions characteristic for an object part, such as muscular or non-muscular object part, of the human, • presenting the moving instructions to the human, • providing at least one wireless mobile monitoring device configured to be placed on the object part of the human, comprising: ∘ a communication module, ∘ an orientation sensor, and/or ∘ a muscular activity sensor, • measuring, by the orientation and/or the muscular activity sensor, the articular angle data and/or muscular activity of the object part while the human moves the object part in accordance with the moving instructions, • communicating by the communication module the measured articular angle data and/or the muscular activity to a computer system where the data is processed, where the processing includes, • comparing the received articular angle position data and/or the muscular activity data with reference data and determining a real-time movement and performance analysis indicator for the object part.
The method according to claim 7, further comprising initially, in response to selecting an object part or object parts on the human to be analyzed, providing information indicating where to place the orientation and/or the muscular activity sensor on the human.
The method according to claim 7 or 8, wherein the step of processing the received articular angle position data and/or the muscular activity data includes processing both the articular angle position data and the muscular activity data, where the step of comparing comprises: ∘ utilizing the articular angle data to align the muscular activity data with corresponding muscular activity reference data (114) for each acquired articular angle position measured by the orientation sensor, and ∘ utilizing the resulting muscular activity data pair for each acquired articular angle position measured by the orientation sensor in calculating the real-time movement and performance analysis indicator (120) for the muscular object part.
The method according to any of the claims 7 to 9, wherein multiple of wireless mobile monitoring devices are utilized to be placed on an injured object part and corresponding healthy object part on the human, where the reference data comprises the data measured on the corresponding healthy object.
The method according to any of the claims 7 to 10, wherein muscular activity reference data comprises pre-stored data from plurality of healthy muscular objects from other humans.
The method according to any of the claims 8 to 11, wherein step of calculating the real-time movement and performance analysis indicator for the object part comprises calculating the difference between the muscular activity data and the corresponding muscular activity reference data for each acquired articular angle position measured by the orientation sensor, where if the difference is above a pre-defined threshold biofeedback command is issued.
The method according to claim 12, wherein the biofeedback command comprises issuing moving instructions at least partly different from the pre-stored moving instructions.
The method according to claim 13, wherein the biofeedback command is issued until the difference between the first muscular activity data and the corresponding muscular activity reference data is above or below the pre-defined threshold.
The method according to any of the claims 9 to 14, wherein the step of processing the received articular angle position data and/or the muscular activity data, and comparing the received articular angle position data and/or the muscular activity data with reference includes: • processing the received articular angle position data and compare it with articular angle position reference data, or • processing the received muscular activity data and compare it with muscular activity reference data.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a system and a method for real-time movement and performance analysis for a human. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Musculoskeletal problems are among the largest health issues in the world, and the number of people requiring solutions is growing faster than healthcare providers can manage. Musculoskeletal problems are one of the leading causes of pain and reduced mobility globally, making them a particular focus for the World Health Organization, WHO. The result is that people live with these ailments longer than necessary, leading to associated negative social impacts and costs. Up to one-third of the world's population suffers from musculoskeletal problems, with the percentage being higher in developed countries. Physical therapists and trainers help their clients to find the best exercises. Their typical service is based on experience, knowledge from books, and/or courses rather than direct measurements. The field is characterized by subjective assessments of which exercises yield the best results. Measurements have shown that the exercises clients are given do not always produce the expected results. Physical therapists are likely the professional group most knowledgeable about human movement. They have a solid foundational knowledge but often lack the time or resources to utilize results from the scientific research and therefore don't have good and standardized guidelines on how to use existing equipment's such as build into the instructions, similar to the movement guidelines. It is estimated that about 70% of their work involves influencing muscles. Measurements typically expected in a standard physical therapy setting are often limited to questionnaires, goniometers, or a single video recording of movement. Thus, a typical physical therapy clinic rarely engages in objective measurements of movement ability. Often patients suffer from lack of muscle control and muscle imbalance which manifests in such a way that one muscle takes over the function of another or is inactive or hyperactive without changing behavior of other muscles. This issue often goes undetected by traditional methods, leading to weeks or even months of treatment on a specific muscle without achieving the expected results. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the invention to address the identified challenges by providing a clinically fitting system and method capable of accurately assessing and intervene musculoskeletal issues, where objective measurements and insights into e.g. muscle control and imbalances, which are often overlooked by traditional approaches may be solved. In general, the invention preferably seeks to mitigate, alleviate or eliminate one or more of the above-mentioned disadvantages of the prior art singly or in any combination. In particular, it may be seen as an object of embodiments of the present invention to provide precise musculoskeletal related data as input in enhancing the effectiveness of treatments and to ensure that patients receive more targeted and scientifically backed interventions, leading to better outcomes and reduced treatment times. In a first aspect of the invention, a system is provided for real-time movement and performance analysis for a human, comprising: at least one wireless mobile monitoring device configured to be placed on an object part of the human, comprising: ∘ a communication module,∘ an orientation sensor, and/or∘ a muscular activity sensor,a computer system configured to present pre-stored moving instructions to the human, where the orientation sensor and/or the muscular activity sensor is/are configured to acquire articular angle data and/or muscular activity data of the object part while the human moves the object part in accordance with the moving instructions,where the articular angle position data and/or the muscular activity data is/are communicated by the communication module to the computer system where the data is processed, where the processing includes comparing the received articular angle position data and/or the muscular activity data with reference data and determining a real-time movement and performance analysis indicator for the object part. The computer system may in an embodiment comprise a computer device comprising a device receiver, a display and a device processor for controlling the device receiver and the display. The computer device may as an example comprise a stationary computer, or any type of a portable device such as a tablet device, mobile phone and the like. The device receiver is configured for receiving the data communicated by the communication module and the display is in an embodiment configured to display the moving instructions via the display. The communication of the data via the communication module to the device receiver may be done via communication protocol such as, but not limited to, WIFI or Bluetooth. The computer device may also comprise a memory for storing the rece