Equimetrix Device: Criteria Based Validation and Reliability Analysis of the Center of Mass and Base of Support of a Human Postural Assessment System

• Main Authors: Pedro Fonseca, Manoela Sousa, Ricardo Sebastião, Márcio Goethel, Pierre Barralon, Igone Idigoras, Filipa Sousa, Leandro Machado, João Paulo Vilas-Boas
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2021-01-01
• Series: Sensors
• Subjects: center of mass; base of support; balance; stability; human postural control; validation study
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/21/2/374

Human postural control is a fundamental ability for static and dynamic tasks, especially in hiper- and hipo-functional populations, such as the elderly. The Equimetrix is a clinical device developed to assess both the base of support (BoS) and the center of mass (CoM) dynamics, thus allowing their use as new evaluation and training tools. This study aims to perform a criteria based validation of Equimetrix by comparing the BoS and CoM data with gold-standard equipment. A motion capture system, force platform, and pressure mat were used to calculate the CoM, center of pressure (CoP) and BoS during bipedal, unipedal, feet together and full tandem stances. Results demonstrate an excellent reliability of Equimetrix in terms of spatial accuracy of the CoM, although over-estimating the CoM height. Differences were found when comparing Mean velocity Path with the CoM, but not with the CoP, indicating a lower reliability in time-based parameters. The Equimetrix presents a tendency to overestimate the BoS, with mixed reliability values, which may be related to the different size of sensing elements between the Equimetrix and the pressure sensing mat. These are encouraging results that should be further explored during dynamic tasks.