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Background Common etiologies for post-traumatic ankle osteoarthritis are ankle fractures and chronic ankle instability. As the nature of trauma is different for these two etiologies, it might be expected that the two subtypes of post-traumatic ankle osteoarthritis would display different foot mechanics during gait. Research question The objective of this exploratory cross-sectional study was to compare the foot kinematics and kinetics of patients suffering from post-fracture ankle osteoarthritis with those of patients suffering from post-sprain ankle osteoarthritis. Methods Twenty-nine subjects with end-stage post-traumatic ankle osteoarthritis and fifteen asymptomatic control subjects participated in this study. All patients suffered from post-traumatic ankle osteoarthritis secondary to ankle-related fracture (Group 1; n = 15) or to chronic ankle instability (Group 2; n = 14). A four-segment kinematic and kinetic foot model was used to calculate intrinsic foot joint kinematics and kinetics during gait. Vector field statistical analysis MANOVA was used to assess differences between groups for the entire three-component intrinsic foot joint angles and moments. Results MANOVA showed significant differences between the groups. Post-hoc analyses suggested that the differences between post-fracture ankle osteoarthritis group and controls were caused by a combination of less adducted Shank-Calcaneus position and less plantarflexion at this joint. Post-hoc analyses also suggested that both pathological groups exhibited a decreased plantarflexion moment for Shank-Calcaneus, Chopart, Lisfranc joints compared to controls. Analyses of both pathological groups versus controls for power suggested lower Shank-Calcaneus and Lisfranc power generation during pre-swing phase. Significance No significant differences were found between the two pathological groups in this exploratory study. Alterations in foot kinematics and kinetics were mainly found about the dorsi-/plantarflexion axis during the pre-swing phase of the stance phase for both pathological groups compared to controls. Observed differences were not limited to the painful ankle joint, but seem also to have affected the kinetics of the neighbouring foot joints.

Background This study evaluated the 3D angle between the joint moment and the joint angular velocity vectors at the intrinsic foot joints, and investigated if these joints are predominantly driven or stabilized during gait. Methods The participants were 20 asymptomatic subjects. A four-segment kinetic foot model was used to calculate and estimate intrinsic foot joint moments, powers and angular velocities during gait. 3D angles between the joint moment and the joint angular velocity vectors were calculated for the intrinsic foot joints defined as follows: ankle joint motion described between the foot and the shank for the one-segment foot model (hereafter referred as Ankle), and between the calcaneus and the shank for the multi-segment foot model (hereafter referred as Shank-Calcaneus); joint motion described between calcaneus and midfoot segments (hereafter referred as Chopart joint); joint motion described between midfoot and metatarsus segments (hereafter referred as Lisfranc joint); joint motion described between first phalanx and first metatarsal (hereafter referred as First Metatarso-Phalangeal joint). When the vectors were approximately aligned, the moment was considered to result in propulsion (3D angle o) or resistance (3D angle >120o) at the joint. When the vectors are approximately orthogonal (3D angle close to 90°), the moment was considered to stabilize the joint. Results The results showed that the four intrinsic joints of the foot are never fully propelling, resisting or being stabilized, but are instead subject to a combination of stabilization with propulsion or resistance during the majority of the stance phase of gait. However, the results also show that during pre-swing all four the joints are subject to moments that result purely in propulsion. At heel off, the propulsive configuration appears for the Lisfranc joint first at terminal stance, then for the other foot joints at pre-swing in the following order: Ankle, Chopart joint and First Metatarso-Phalangeal joint. Conclusions Intrinsic foot joints adopt a stabilized-resistive configuration during the majority of the stance phase, with the exception of pre-swing during which all joints were found to adopt a propulsive configuration. The notion of stabilization, resistance and propulsion should be further investigated in subjects with foot and ankle disorders.

SB'20, 45ème Congrès de la Société de Biomécanique, Metz, France, 26-/10/2020 - 28/10/2020; The present study was thus designed to test the hypothesis that different types of footwear could induce a change in mediolateral stability.

A lot of attention has been paid to wearable inertial sensors regarded as an alternative solution for outdoor human motion tracking. Relevant joint angles can only be calculated from anatomical orientations, but they are negatively impacted by soft tissue artifact (STA) defined as skin motion with respect to the underlying bone; the accuracy of measured joint angle during movement is affected by the ongoing misalignment of the sensor. In this work, a new sensor-to-segment calibration using inertial measurement units is proposed. Inspired by the multiple calibration for a cluster of skin markers, it consists in performing first multiple static postures of the upper limb in all anatomical planes. The movements that affect sensor alignment are identified then alignment differences between sensors and segment frames are calculated for each posture and linearly interpolated. Experimental measurements were carried out on a mechanical model and on a subject who performed different movements of right elbow and shoulder. Multiple calibration showed significant improvement in joint angle measurement on the mechanical model as well as on human joint angle comparing to those obtained from attached sensors after technical calibration. During shoulder internal-external rotation, the maximal error value decreased more than 50% after correction. Graphical abstract Elbow flexion-extension joint angle values obtained from IMUs are well-corrected after applying multiple calibration procedure. Though shoulder internal-external rotation joint angle is more affected by soft tissue artifact, multiple calibration procedure improves the angle values obtained from IMUs.

Introduction Variations in the length of lateral extra-articular reconstruction (LER) have been widely investigated during knee flexion but there is no information about length changes during pivot shift. This study sought to assess the changes in LER tension during weightbearing knee flexion in a normal knee and in a computer-simulated pivot-shift scenario. Hypothesis Placing the femoral tunnel posterior and proximal to the lateral femoral epicondyle allows the LER to tighten early in the flexion range during weightbearing (squatting motion) and simulated pivot-shift. Material and methods A computer model was used to simulate weightbearing knee flexion and pivot shift scenarios. Changes in LER tension were calculated in both scenarios by estimating the distance between six femoral attachment sites (posterior and proximal to the lateral femoral epicondyle) and two tibial tunnel locations: Gerdy's tubercle (GT) and the anterolateral ligament (ALL) anatomic attachment site. Results Independent of the location of the femoral and tibial tunnels, the LER tightened by up to 22% of its resting length during the early portion of weightbearing knee flexion and then relaxed from 40° to 60° of knee flexion. The ALL tibial tunnel position allowed complete LER relaxation at 60° flexion whereas LER using the GT tibial tunnel position remained tighter. In the simulated pivot-shift test, and for all femoral tunnel locations, the LER tightened by 20% to 34% of its resting value for the GT tibial tunnel position and by 11% to 26% for the ALL tibial tunnel position. Discussion During weightbearing knee flexion, placing the femoral tunnel proximal and posterior to the femoral epicondyle was associated with LER tightening in the early degrees of flexion and LER relaxation between 40 and 60° flexion. LER tightening occurred during a simulated pivot-shift test supporting the concept that a posterior and proximal femoral LER tunnel position is most effective during weightbearing knee flexion and altered knee kinematics.

This study evaluated the association of contact point locations with the knee medial and lateral contact force (Fmed, Flat) alterations in OA and healthy subjects. A musculoskeletal model of the lower limb with subject-specific tibiofemoral contact point trajectories was used to estimate the Fmed and Flat in ten healthy and twelve OA subjects during treadmill gait. Regression analyses were performed to evaluate the correlation of the contact point locations, knee adduction moment (KAM), knee flexion moment (KFM), frontal plane alignment, and gait speed with the Fmed and Flat. Medial contact point locations in the medial–lateral direction showed a poor correlation with the Fmed in OA (R2 = 0.13, p = 0.01) and healthy (R2 = 0.24, p = 0.001) subjects. Anterior–posterior location of the contact points also showed a poor correlation with the Fmed of OA subjects (R2 = 0.32, p med and Flat, respectively (R2 between 0.62 and 0.69). Results suggest different mechanisms of contact force distribution in OA joints. The variations in the location of the contact points participate partially to explains the Fmed variations in OA subjects together with the KFM and KAM.

Background: Kinematic and kinetic foot models showed that computing ankle joint angles, moments and power with a one-segment foot modeling approach alters kinematics and tends to overestimate ankle joint power. Nevertheless, gait studies continue to implement one-segment foot models to assess the effect of total ankle replacement. Research question: The objective of this pilot study was to investigate the effect of the foot modeling approach (one-segment versus multi-segment) on how total ankle replacement is estimated to benefit or degrade the patient's biomechanical performance. Methods: Ten subjects with post-traumatic ankle osteoarthritis scheduled for total ankle replacement and 10 asymptomatic subjects were recruited. A one-segment and a multi-segment foot model were used to calculate intrinsic foot joints kinematics and kinetics during gait. A linear mixed model was used to investigate the effect of the foot model on ankle joint kinematic and kinetic analysis and the effect of total ankle replacement. Results: Differences in range of motion due to the foot model effect were significant for all the gait subphases of interest except for midstance. Peak power generation was significantly overestimated when computed with the one-segment foot model. Ankle and shank-calcaneus joint dorsi-/plantarflexion range of motion did not increase post-operatively except during the loading response phase. A significant 'group' effect was found for stance and pre-swing phase range of motion, with total ankle replacement patients showing lower range of motion values than controls for dorsi/plantarflexion. Significance: The outcome of this study showed that the 'foot model' had a significant effect on estimates of range of motion and power generation. The findings in our study therefore emphasize the clinical interest of multi-segment foot modeling when assessing the outcome of a therapeutic intervention.

45ème Congrès de la Société de Biomécanique, Metz, FRANCE, 26-/10/2020 - 28/10/2020; The objective of this study is to evaluate subjectspecific kinematic constraints obtained by fluoroscopy on patients with a total knee prosthesis.

SB'20, 45ème Congrès de la Société de Biomécanique, Metz, France, 26-/10/2020 - 28/10/2020; The aim of this study was to calculate, for an asymptomatic healthy population, the quasi-stiffness of the intrinsic foot joints during mid-stance. This phase is characterised by a single leg support with low propulsion as it occurs before heel-off and by a presumed major contribution of the passive foot structures.

Knee orthoses are designed to reestablish the normal kinematics of the knee joint. However, the data on the effectiveness of them on modifying the internal joint kinematics are scarce. The aim of this study was to develop a method to allow accurate comparison of the knee contact kinematics in osteoarthritic (OA) subjects with and without wearing a valgus knee orthosis using imaging techniques. Biplane x-ray images of a subject (68 yrs., female, 1.70 m, 89 kg, left knee) was recorded during a weight-bearing squat at five positions. The same squat trial was repeated while wearing the orthosis. The 3D models of the knee were reconstructed from the biplane x-rays and the joint kinematics as well as the tibiofemoral contact point locations and bone-to-bone distance were compared at each posture. This could be seen as a proof of concept for the use of contact point locations as a parameter for evaluating the effectiveness of knee orthoses.Clinical Relevance- Joint kinematics derived from the skin markers suffer from low accuracy. The real impact of the knee orthoses on the skeleton takes vigorous techniques, which allows detecting the subtle kinematics changes directly at the joint level.

CMBBE 2019, International Symposium on Computer Methods in Biomechanics and Biomedical Engineering, New-York, ETATS-UNIS, 14-/08/2019 - 16/08/2019; Tibiofemoral medial and lateral contact forces, analysed on healthy volunteers, seem to depend on the trajectories of the contact points. Contact point trajectories in OA patients are shifted in the medial direction and contact forces are generally reported to be slightly reduced.The present study compares medial and lateral contact forces between OA patients and healthy volunteers. The forces are estimated during gait using a musculoskeletal model with subject-specific contact point trajectories obtained from biplane X-ray images at different flexion angles. Large inter-subject variability was found in the contact point trajectories and the contact forces. Significant but weak correlations were found between the positions of the contact points in the medial-lateral direction and the peaks of medial contact forces for both healthy volunteers and OA patients: the more medial the contact points the lower the forces.In the literature, when computing the contact forces considering a frontal equilibrium only, the correlation is obviously strong. Relationship between the positions of the contact points and the contact forces is more controversial in studies using deformable knee models. The interactions between altered contact points and contact forces should be further investigated with subject-specific musculoskeletal models.

Accurate estimation of the tibiofemoral contact forces relies on exact kinematics and joint geometry. Subject-specific kinematic constraints representing contact point trajectories derived from fluoroscopic measurements during lunge are introduced in a musculoskeletal model of the lower limb and compared to generic kinematic constraints. The medial, lateral, and total contact forces during gait and squat are validated using the data of four patients with an instrumented prosthesis. The accuracy of the estimated contact forces (both with subject-specific and generic kinematic constraints) remains close to the level reported in the literature. The mean root mean square errors range from 0.32 to 0.52 body weights for gait and from 0.27 to 0.72 body weights for squat. The impact of the subject-specific contact point trajectories is not found substantial or consistent between patients and tasks. Indeed, the kinematics of the total knee prostheses remains close to the kinematics of a hinge joint and the contact point locations remain generally centred at 20 mm from the tibia centreline (close to the constant value defined in the generic constraints). The contact point trajectories are also suspected to differ between tasks (lunge vs. gait and squat). While the contact point trajectories have been reported to be sensitive model parameters, no clear improvement of the contact force accuracy is demonstrated on patients with instrumented prosthesis. The introduction (as kinematic constraints) of fluoroscopy-based contact point trajectories may be considered in cases where these trajectories are significantly altered, as reported for osteoarthritis patients.

Background To determine the influence of anterolateral ligament reconstruction (ALLR) on knee constraint through the analysis of knee abduction (valgus) moment when the knee is subjected to external translational (anterior) or rotational (internal) loads. Methods A knee computer model simulated from a three-dimensional computed tomography scan of healthy male was implemented for this study. Three groups were designed: (1) intact knee, (2) combined Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) and Antero-Lateral Complex (ALC) deficient knee, and (3) combined ACL and Antero- lateral Ligament (ALL) reconstructed knee. The reconstructed knee group was subdivided into four groups according to attachment of reconstructed anterolateral ligament to the femoral epicondyle. Each group of simulated knees was placed at 0°, 10°, 20°, 30°, 40° and 50° of knee flexion. For each position an external anterior (drawer) 90-N force or a five-newton meter internal rotation moment was applied to the tibia. The interaction effect between the group of knees and knee flexion angle (0–50°) on knee kinematics and knee abduction moment under external loads was tested. Results When reconstructed knees were subjected to a 90-N anterior force or a five-newton meter internal rotation moment there was significant reduction in anterior translation and internal rotation compared with deficient knees. Only the ALLR procedure using posterior and proximal femoral attachment sites for graft fixation combined with ACL reconstruction allowed similar mechanical behavior to that observed in the intact knee. Conclusions Combined ACL and ALLR using a minimally invasive method in an anatomically reproducible manner prevents excessive anterior translation and internal rotation. Using postero-proximal femoral attachment tunnel for reconstruction of ALL does not produce overconstraint of the lateral tibiofemoral compartment.

The lower limb passive actions representing the actions of all the passive periarticular structures have been shown to have a significant contribution to the power generation and absorption during gait. However, the respective magnitude of its different components was not established, although models of ligament moment were implemented in some musculoskeletal models. These ligament moments have shown to have an influence on the musculo-tendon forces and contact forces but the models used were never specifically evaluated, that is, compared to the passive and net joint moments. Two models of passive joint moments and three models of ligament moments were selected from the literature. Ten subjects (23–29 years old, 79.8 ± 9.5 kg, 1.85 ± 0.06 m) participated in the study. Each subject performed three gait cycles in a gait laboratory to acquire the kinematics and ground reaction forces and to compute the ligament, passive and net moments of the right lower limb joints. The contributions of the passive joint moments to the net joint moments were in accordance with the literature, although time shifts appeared for peaks in the hip and knee powers. Two of the models of ligament moments seemed, in fact, to represent the passive joint moments as their contributions were very similar while the third model of ligament moments seemed to represent only penalty-based joint limits. As a conclusion, this study showed that the models of ligament moments existing in the literature do not seem reliable. This study also demonstrated that the use of non-subject-specific models of the passive joint moments could be a valid approach for healthy subjects.

The estimation of joint kinematics from skin markers is hindered by the soft tissue artefact (STA), a well-known phenomenon although not fully characterized. While most assessments of the STA have been performed based on the individual skin markers displacements, recent assessments were based on the marker-cluster geometrical transformations using, e.g., principal component or modal analysis. However, these marker-clusters were generally made of 4?6 markers and the current findings on the STA could have been biased by the limited number of skin makers analysed. The objective of the present study was therefore to confirm them with a high-density marker set, i.e. 40 markers placed on the segments. A larger number of modes than found in the literature was required to describe the STA. Nevertheless, translations and rotations of the marker-cluster remained the main STA modes, archetypally the translation along the proximal-distal and anterior-posterior axes for the shank and the translation along the proximal-distal axis and the rotation about the medial-lateral axis for the thigh. High correlations were also found between the knee flexion angle and the amplitude of these modes for the thigh whereas moderate ones were found for the shank. These findings support the current re-orientation of the STA compensation methods, from bone pose estimators which typically address the non-rigid components of the marker-cluster to kinematic-driven rigid-component STA models.

International audience; This paper presents a method for real-time estimation of the kinematics and kinetics of a human body performing a sagittal symmetric motor task, which would minimize the impact of the stereophotogrammetric soft tissue artefacts (STA). The method is based on a bi-dimensional mechanical model of the locomotor apparatus the state variables of which (joint angles, velocities and accelerations, and the segments lengths and inertial parameters) are estimated by a constrained extended Kalman filter (CEKF) that fuses input information made of both stereophotogrammetric and dynamometric measurement data. Filter gains are made to saturate in order to obtain plausible state variables and the measurement covariance matrix of the filter accounts for the expected STA maximal amplitudes. We hypothesised that the ensemble of constraints and input redundant information would allow the method to attenuate the STA propagation to the end results. The method was evaluated in ten human subjects performing a squat exercise. The CEKF estimated and measured skin marker trajectories exhibited a RMS difference lower than 4mm, thus in the range of STAs. The RMS differences between the measured ground reaction force and moment and those estimated using the proposed method (9N and 10Nm) were much lower than obtained using a classical inverse dynamics approach (22N and 30Nm). From the latter results it may be inferred that the presented method allows for a significant improvement of the accuracy with which kinematic variables and relevant time derivatives, model parameters and, therefore, intersegmental moments are estimated.

ESMAC 2020 - Annual meeting of the European Society of Movement Analysys for Adults and children, -, -, 17-/09/2020 - 17/09/2020; The Conventional Gait Model is an extensively used model in clinical gait analysis (CGA). The repeatability of CGA is a key factor for providing reliable data to support clinical decision making. Marker misplacement is a predominant factor contributing to kinematic errors. A marker misplacement of 6?25?mm was reported in a test-retest study.

44th Congress of the Société de Biomécanique, Poitiers, France, 28-/10/2019 - 30/10/2019; Task related estimation of the musculo-tendon and intervertebral forces in the neck can help gaining some insights on the role of the central nervous system and in assessing cervical spine disorders. Musculoskeletal models have been developed to solve the muscular redundancy and estimate these forces, generally based on a static equilibrium computed at the level of the C4/ C5 joint, e.g., (Moroney et al. 1988; Van den Abbeele et al. 2018). However, solving the equilibrium of the entire cervical spine system is essential to be able to evaluate its muscular response (including from its numerous multi-level muscles) as well as the loads transmitted to the vertebrae and inter-vertebral discs. This study investigates the distribution of the intervertebral compression and shear forces in the cervical spine during two isometric maximum voluntary contractions (MVC) tasks, toward neck flexion and extension. The forces at the C4/C5 joint and the musculo-tendon forces of 8 muscle groups are compared with the results of two other neck models reported in the literature.

Resume Introduction Le comportement d’une reconstruction laterale extra-articulaire (LER) a ete largement etudie lors de la flexion du genou, alors qu’aucune information n’est donnee lors d’un pivot-shift. Ainsi, l’objectif de cette etude etait d’evaluer les variations de tension d’une LER lors d’une tâche de flexion de genou en charge et lors de scenarios de pivot-shift simules. Hypothese Un tunnel femoral posterieur et proximal a l’epicondyle femoral lateral permettait a la LER de se tendre dans les premiers degres de flexion du genou, lors de la flexion en charge et lors de pivot-shift simules. Materiel et methode Un modele informatique a ete implemente pour simuler des flexions en charge et des scenarios de pivot-shift. La mise en tension de la LER a ete calculee dans les deux conditions en estimant la distance entre six localisations de tunnels femoraux (tous posterieurs et proximal a l’epicondyle femoral) et deux postions de tunnels tibiaux : le tubercule de Gerdy (GT) et l’insertion anatomique du ligament anterolateral natif (ALL). Resultats Independamment de la position des tunnels femoraux ou tibiaux, la LER se tendait jusqu’a 22 % de la valeur de repos lors des premiers degres de flexion de genou en charge, puis se relâchait de 40 a 60° de flexion de genou. Cependant, un tunnel tibial localise a l’insertion du ligament anterolateral (ALL) permettait un relâchement complet de la LER a 60° de flexion de genou alors que lorsque le tunnel etait place en GT la LER restait plus tendue. Pour les mouvements de pivot-shift simules et quelle que soit la position du tunnel femoral, la LER se tendait entre 20 et 34 % de la valeur de repos pour un tunnel tibial en GT et entre 11 et 26 % pour un tunnel tibial en ALL. Discussion Lors d’une flexion de genou en charge, un tunnel femoral posterieur et proximal a l’epicondyle femoral permet a la LER de se tendre lors des premiers degres de flexion et de se relâcher entre 40 et 60° de flexion. Lors de pivot-shifts simules la LER se tend, supportant ainsi la notion qu’un positionnement postero-proximal du tunnel femoral de la LER serait efficace a la fois lors d’une flexion de genou en charge et lors d’une cinematique alteree de genou.

The International Society of Biomechanics (ISB) has charged this committee with development of a standard similar in scope to the kinematic standard proposed in Wu et al. (2002) and Wu et al. (2005). Given the variety of purposes for which intersegmental forces and moments are used in biomechanical research, it is not possible to recommend a particular set of analysis standards that will be acceptable in all applications. Instead, it is the purpose of this paper to recommend a set of reporting standards that will result in an understanding of the differences between investigations and the ability to reproduce the research. The end products of this standard are (1) a critical checklist that can be used during submission of manuscripts and abstracts to insure adequate description of methods, and (2) a web based visualization tool that can be used to alter the coordinate system, normalization technique and internal/external perspective of intersegmental forces and moments during walking and running so that the shape and magnitude of the curves can be compared to one's own data.

Musculoskeletal models generally solve the muscular redundancy by numerical optimisation. They have been extensively validated using instrumented implants. Conversely, a reduction approach considers only one flexor or extensor muscle group at the time to equilibrate the inter-segmental joint moment. It is not clear if such models can still predict reliable joint contact and musculo-tendon forces during gait. Tibiofemoral contact force and gastrocnemii, quadriceps, and hamstrings musculo-tendon forces were estimated using a reduction approach for five subjects walking with an instrumented prosthesis. The errors in the proximal-distal tibiofemoral contact force fell in the range (0.3-0.9 body weight) reported in the literature for musculoskeletal models using numerical optimisation. The musculo-tendon forces were in agreement with the EMG envelops and appeared comparable to the ones reported in the literature with generic musculoskeletal models. Although evident simplifications and limitations, it seems that the reduction approach can provided quite reliable results. It can be a useful pedagogical tool in biomechanics, e.g. to illustrate the theoretical differences between inter-segmental and contact forces, and can provide a first estimate of the joint loadings in subjects with limited musculoskeletal deformities and neurological disorders.

The study presents a screening method used to identify the influential parameters of a lower limb model including ligaments, at low numerical cost. Concerning multibody kinematics optimisation, the ligament parameters (isometric length) were found the most influential ones in a previous study. The screening method tested if they remain influential with minimised length variations. The most important parameters for tibiofemoral kinematics were the skin markers, segment lengths and joint parameters, including two ligaments. This was confirmed by a quantitative sensitivity analysis. The screening method has the potential to be used as a stand-alone procedure for a sensitivity analysis.

Background Obtaining precise and repeatable measurements is essential to clinical gait analysis. However, defining the thigh medial-lateral axis segment remains a challenge, with particular implications for the hip rotation profile. Thigh medial-lateral axis misalignment modifies the hip rotation profile and can result in a phenomenon called crosstalk, which increases knee adduction-abduction amplitude artificially. Research question This study proposes an a posteriori geometrical method based solely on segment anatomy that aims to correct the thigh medial-lateral axis definition and crosstalk-related error. Methods The proposed method considers the thigh medial-lateral axis as the normal to the mean sagittal plane of the lower limb defined by hip, knee and ankle joint centres during one gait cycle. Its performance was compared to that of an optimisation method which repositions the axis to reduce knee abduction-adduction variance. An existing dataset was used: 75 patients with a knee prosthesis undergoing gait analysis three months and one-year post-surgery. Three-dimensional hip and knee angles were computed for two gait analysis sessions. Crosstalk was quantified using both the coefficient of determination (r²) between knee flexion-extension and adduction-abduction and the amplitude of knee adduction-abduction. The reproducibility of hip internal-external rotation was also quantified using the inter-trial, inter-session and inter-subject standard deviations and the intraclass coefficient (ICC). Results Crosstalk was significantly reduced from r² = 0.67 to r² = 0.51 by the geometrical method but remained significantly higher than with the optimisation method with a r² Significances Both methods allowed to improve the hip internal-external reproducibility from poor to moderate (original data: ICC = 0.34, geometrical method: ICC = 0.65, optimisation method ICC = 0.73). One advantage of the geometrical method is that, unlike the optimisation method, it does not require much movement, making it suitable for a wider range of patients.

The extrapolated center of mass (XCoM), a valuable tool to assess balance stability, involves defining the whole body center of mass (CoMWB). However, accurate three-dimensional estimation of the CoMWB is time consuming, a severe limitation in certain applications. In this study, twenty-four subjects (young and elderly, male and female) performed three different balance tasks: quiet standing, gait and balance recovery. Three different models, based on a segmental method, were used to estimate the three-dimensional CoMWB absolute position during these movements: a reference model based on 38 markers, a simplified 13-marker model and a single marker (sacral) model. CoMWB and XCoM estimations from the proposed simplified model came closer to the reference model than estimations from the sacral marker model. It remained accurate for dynamic tasks, where the sacral marker model proved inappropriate. The simplified model proposed here yields accurate three-dimensional estimation of both the CoMWB and the XCoM with a limited number of markers. Importantly, using this model would reduce the experimental and post-processing times for future balance studies assessing dynamic stability in humans.

Knee joint kinematics derived from multi-body optimisation (MBO) still requires evaluation. The objective of this study was to corroborate model-derived kinematics of osteoarthritic knees obtained using four generic knee joint models used in musculoskeletal modelling – spherical, hinge, degree-of-freedom coupling curves and parallel mechanism – against reference knee kinematics measured by stereo-radiography. Root mean square errors ranged from 0.7° to 23.4° for knee rotations and from 0.6 to 9.0 mm for knee displacements. Model-derived knee kinematics computed from generic knee joint models was inaccurate. Future developments and experiments should improve the reliability of osteoarthritic knee models in MBO and musculoskeletal modelling.

Recent musculoskeletal models allow the investigation of the contribution of individual musculo-tendon forces to the locomotion dynamics. However, most of the studies are based on a forward dynamics with a high computational cost and have principally investigated the contribution to the ground reaction forces and the centre of mass acceleration. The aim of this study was to apply a pseudo-inverse method to a musculoskeletal model that includes the contact, ligament and bone forces. The results replicated well the literature for the contributions of individual musculo-tendon forces to both the vertical ground reaction force and the total tibiofemoral contact force, and provide new insights for the axial compression force of the femur during normal gait.; Les modèles musculo-squelettiques récents permettent d'estimer la contribution des forces musculo-tendineuses à la dynamique de locomotion. Cependant, la plupart des études utilisent une formulation en dynamique directe avec des temps de calculs importants et se focalisent principalement sur la contribution aux forces de réaction au sol ou à l'accélération du centre de masse. L'objectif de cette étude était d'appliquer une méthode basée sur une pseudo-inverse à un modèle musculo-squelettique incluant les forces articulaires, ligamentaires et osseuses. Les résultats reproduisent bien la littérature pour la contribution des forces musculo-tendineuses à la force de réaction au sol et à la force de contact tibiofémorale et donnent un nouvel éclairage pour la force de compression du fémur pendant la marche.

Musculoskeletal models are widely used in biomechanics today to better understand muscle and joint function. Musculo-tendon forces as well as joint contact forces and ligament forces can be estimated within an inverse dynamics computational framework. Using a musculoskeletal model of the lower limb, this chapter presents the different optimisations required to drive the model with experimental data and to compute these forces and their interactions. In these optimisations, the development of anatomical constraints representing, for example, the medial and lateral tibiofemoral contacts or the cruciate ligaments is crucial both to inverse kinematics and to inverse dynamics. Some emblematic results are presented for knee contact forces and ligament forces during gait, illustrating the couplings between joint degrees of freedom and the interactions between forces acting both in muscles and in joints.

Background: Surgical parameters such as the selection of tibial and femoral attachment site, graft tension, and knee flexion angle at the time of fixation may influence the control of knee stability after lateral extra-articular reconstruction. This study aimed to determine how sensitive is the control of knee rotation and translation, during simulated pivot-shift scenarios, to these four surgery settings.\ud \ud Methods: A computer model was used to simulate 625 lateral extra-articular reconstructions based upon five different variations of each of the following parameters: femoral and tibial attachment sites, knee flexion angle and graft tension at the time of fixation. For each simulated surgery, the lateral extra-articular reconstruction external rotation moment at the knee joint center was computed during simulated pivot-shift scenarios. The sensitivity of the control of knee rotation and translation to a given surgery setting was assessed by calculating the coefficient of variation of the lateral extra-articular reconstruction external rotation moment.\ud \ud Findings: Graft tension had minimal influence on the control of knee rotation and translation with less than 2.4% of variation across the scenarios tested. Control of knee rotation and translation was the least affected by the femoral attachment site if the knee was close to full extension at the time of graft fixation. The choice of the tibial attachment site was crucial when the femoral fixation was proximal and posterior to the femoral epicondyle since 15 to 67% of variation was observed in the control of knee rotation and translation.\ud \ud Interpretation: Femoral and tibial attachment sites as well as knee flexion angle at the time of fixation should be considered by surgeons when performing lateral extra-articular reconstruction. Variation in graft tension between the ranges 20–40 N has minimal influence on the control of knee rotation and translation.

Multibody kinematics optimization (MKO) aims to reduce soft tissue artefact (STA) and is a key step in musculoskeletal modeling. The objective of this review was to identify the numerical methods, their validation and performance for the estimation of the human joint kinematics using MKO. Seventy-four papers were extracted from a systematized search in five databases and cross-referencing. Model-derived kinematics were obtained using either constrained optimization or Kalman filtering to minimize the difference between measured (i.e., by skin markers, electromagnetic or inertial sensors) and model-derived positions and/or orientations. While hinge, universal, and spherical joints prevail, advanced models (e.g., parallel and four-bar mechanisms, elastic joint) have been introduced, mainly for the knee and shoulder joints. Models and methods were evaluated using: (i) simulated data based, however, on oversimplified STA and joint models; (ii) reconstruction residual errors, ranging from 4 mm to 40 mm; (iii) sensitivity analyses which highlighted the effect (up to 36 deg and 12 mm) of model geometrical parameters, joint models, and computational methods; (iv) comparison with other approaches (i.e., single body kinematics optimization and nonoptimized kinematics); (v) repeatability studies that showed low intra- and inter-observer variability; and (vi) validation against ground-truth bone kinematics (with errors between 1 deg and 22 deg for tibiofemoral rotations and between 3 deg and 10 deg for glenohumeral rotations). Moreover, MKO was applied to various movements (e.g., walking, running, arm elevation). Additional validations, especially for the upper limb, should be undertaken and we recommend a more systematic approach for the evaluation of MKO. In addition, further model development, scaling, and personalization methods are required to better estimate the secondary degrees-of-freedom (DoF).

The aim of this study was to examine the respective aptitudes of three rotation sequences (YtXf2Yh22, ZtXf2Yh22, and XtZf2Yh22) to effectively describe the orientation of the humerus relative to the thorax during a movement involving a large horizontal abduction/adduction component: the tennis forehand drive. An optoelectronic system was used to record the movements of eight elite male players, each performing ten forehand drives. The occurrences of gimbal lock, phase angle discontinuity and incoherency in the time course of the three angles defining humerothoracic rotation were examined for each rotation sequence. Our results demonstrated that no single sequence effectively describes humerothoracic motion without discontinuities throughout the forehand motion. The humerothoracic joint angles can nevertheless be described without singularities when considering the backswing/forward-swing and the follow-through phases separately. Our findings stress that the sequence choice may have implications for the report and interpretation of 3D joint kinematics during large shoulder range of motion. Consequently, the use of Euler/Cardan angles to represent 3D orientation of the humerothoracic joint in sport tasks requires the evaluation of the rotation sequence regarding singularity occurrence before analysing the kinematic data, especially when the task involves a large shoulder range of motion in the horizontal plane.

Contact point (CP) trajectory is a crucial parameter in estimating medial/lateral tibio-femoral contact forces from the musculoskeletal (MSK) models. The objective of the present study was to develop a method to incorporate the subject-specific CP trajectories into the MSK model. Ten healthy subjects performed 45 s treadmill gait trials. The subject-specific CP trajectories were constructed on the tibia and femur as a function of extension-flexion using low-dose bi-plane X-ray images during a quasi-static squat. At each extension-flexion position, the tibia and femur CPs were superimposed in the three directions on the medial side, and in the anterior-posterior and proximal-distal directions on the lateral side to form the five kinematic constraints of the knee joint. The Lagrange multipliers associated to these constraints directly yielded the medial/lateral contact forces. The results from the personalized CP trajectory model were compared against the linear CP trajectory and sphere-on-plane CP trajectory models which were adapted from the commonly used MSK models. Changing the CP trajectory had a remarkable impact on the knee kinematics and changed the medial and lateral contact forces by 1.03 BW and 0.65 BW respectively, in certain subjects. The direction and magnitude of the medial/lateral contact force were highly variable among the subjects and the medial-lateral shift of the CPs alone could not determine the increase/decrease pattern of the contact forces. The suggested kinematic constraints are adaptable to the CP trajectories derived from a variety of joint models and those experimentally measured from the 3D imaging techniques.

Assessing the functional ability depending on the prosthesis fitting of individuals with transfemoral amputation (TFA) is critical for overall rehabilitation and prosthetic care. Gait analysis could provide an overwhelming number of biomechanical parameters. We argue that margins of stability (MoS) could be critical indicators of TFA’s control strategy. A study revealed statistically larger MoS on the prosthetic limb when comparing medial-lateral MoS for six TFAs fitted with a socket-suspended prostheses and six able- bodied during treadmill walking (Hof et al. 2007). Another study showed limited and non-significant differences when comparing anterior-posterior MoS for ten TFA fitted with mechanical and microprocessor-controlled knees during walking overground (Prinsen et al. 2017). There is a need to report MoS more widely, particularly for TFA fitted with bone-anchored prosthesis as osseoperception should improve control. A single case study demonstrated that the load applied by bone-anchored prosthesis fitted with microprocessor-controlled was attenuated by 10-20% compared to mechanical knee (Frossard et al. 2013). However, the impact of these loading differences on the overall gait pattern, including medial-lateral MoS, remains unknown.

Aim of the workInjury to the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is frequently accompanied by tears of the menisci. Some of these tears occur at the time of injury, but others develop over time in the ACL-deficient knee. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of the patient characteristics, time from injury (TFI), and posterior tibial slope (PTS) on meniscal tear patterns. Our hypothesis was that meniscal tears would occur more frequently in ACL-deficient knees with increasing age, weight, TFI, PTS, and in male patients.MethodsOf the ACL-injured patients, 362 were analyzed, and details of meniscal lesions were collected. The medial and lateral tibial slopes (MTS, LTS) were measured via computed tomography. Patient demographics, TFI, MTS, and LTS were correlated with the diagnosed meniscal tears.ResultsOf the patients, 113 had a medial meniscus (MM) tear, 54 patients had a lateral meniscus (LM) tear, 34 patients had tears of both menisci, and 161 patients had no meniscal tear. The most common tear location was the posterior horn (PH) of the MM, followed by tear involving the whole MM. Patient age, BMI, and TFI were significantly associated with the incidence of MM tear. Female patients had a higher incidence of injury than males in all tear sites except in the body and PH. Male patients had more vertical and peripheral tears. The median MTS and LTS for patients with MM tears were 7.0°and 8.7°, respectively, while those of patients with LM tears were 6.9° and 8.1°. Steeper LTS was significantly associated with tears of LM and of both menisci.ConclusionOlder age, male sex, increased BMI, and prolonged TFI were significant factors for the development of MM tears. An increase in the tibial slope, especially of the lateral plateau, seems to increase the risk of tear of the LM and of both menisci.Level of evidence: Level III.

Sensitivity analysis is a typical part of biomechanical models evaluation. For lower limb multi-body models, sensitivity analyses have been mainly performed on musculoskeletal parameters, more rarely on the parameters of the joint models. This study deals with a global sensitivity analysis achieved on a lower limb multi-body model that introduces anatomical constraints at the ankle, tibiofemoral, and patellofemoral joints. The aim of the study was to take into account the uncertainty of parameters (e.g. 2.5 cm on the positions of the skin markers embedded in the segments, 5° on the orientation of hinge axis, 2.5 mm on the origin and insertion of ligaments) using statistical distributions and propagate it through a multi-body optimisation method used for the computation of joint kinematics from skin markers during gait. This will allow us to identify the most influential parameters on the minimum of the objective function of the multi-body optimisation (i.e. the sum of the squared distances between measured and model-determined skin marker positions) and on the joint angles and displacements. To quantify this influence, a Fourier-based algorithm of global sensitivity analysis coupled with a Latin hypercube sampling is used. This sensitivity analysis shows that some parameters of the motor constraints, that is to say the distances between measured and model-determined skin marker positions, and the kinematic constraints are highly influencing the joint kinematics obtained from the lower limb multi-body model, for example, positions of the skin markers embedded in the shank and pelvis, parameters of the patellofemoral hinge axis, and parameters of the ankle and tibiofemoral ligaments. The resulting standard deviations on the joint angles and displacements reach 36° and 12 mm. Therefore, personalisation, customisation or identification of these most sensitive parameters of the lower limb multi-body models may be considered as essential.

42ème congrès de la Société de Biomécanique, REIMS, FRANCE, 02-/11/2017 - 03/11/2017; To better understand the mechanisms underlying the dynamics of gait, it is important to investigate how individual muscles contribute to the ground reaction force and to the acceleration of the centre of mass (i.e. progression, balance, and support). This was analysed in numerous studies using forward dynamics and perturbation analysis (e.g. Arnold et al. 2007; Allen and Neptune 2012; Correa and Pandy 2013). Only one study (Moissenet et al. 2017) investigated how individual muscles contribute to ground reaction force and moment using inverse dynamics (Moissenet et al. 2014) and pseudo-inverse (Lin et al. 2011) methods. Still, only the contributions to the vertical component of the ground reaction moment were analysed (Moissenet et al. 2017) while knowing all the components of the ground reaction force and moment opened the way to the further analysis of the position of the centre of pressure (CoP). The objective of the present study is, therefore, to investigate the individual muscle contributions to the position of the CoP. The results of this study may give access to a deeper understanding of the impacts of motor impairments on CoP and on the dynamic balance during gait in a pathological context.

Background: Immature balance control is considered an important rate limiter for maturation of gait. The spatial margin of stability (MoS) is a biomechanical measure of dynamic balance control that might provide insights into balance control strategies used by children during the developmental course of gait. Research hypothesis: We hypothesize there will be an age-dependent decrease in MoS in children with typical development. To understand the mechanics, relations between MoS and spatio-temporal parameters of gait are investigated. Methods: Total body gait analysis of typically developing children (age 1-10, n = 84) were retrospectively selected from available databases. MoS is defined as the minimum distance between the center of pressure and the extrapolated center of mass along the mediolateral axis during the single support phases. Results: MoS shows a moderate negative correlation with stride length (rho = -0.510), leg length (rho = - 0.440), age (rho = - 0.368) and swing duration (rho = - 0.350). A weak correlation was observed between MoS and walking speed (rho = - 0.243) and step width (rho = 0.285). A stepwise linear regression model showed only one predictor, swing duration, explaining 18% of the variance in MoS. MoS decreases with increasing duration of swing (beta = - 0.422). This relation is independent of age. Significance: A larger MoS induces a larger lateral divergence of the CoM that could be compensated by a quicker step. Future research should compare the observed strategies in children to those used in adults and in children with altered balance control related to pathology.

Soft tissue artifact (STA) is the main source of error in kinematic estimation of human movements based on skin markers. Our objective was to determine the components of marker displacements that best describe STA of the shoulder and arm (i.e. clavicle, scapula and humerus). Four participants performed arm flexion and rotation, a daily-life and a sports movement. Three pins with reflective markers were inserted into the clavicle, scapula and humerus. In addition, up to seven skin markers were stuck on each segment. STA was described with a modal approach: individual marker displacements or marker-cluster (i.e. translations, rotations, homotheties and stretches) relative to the local segment coordinate system defined by markers secured to the pins. The modes were then ranked according to the percentage of total STA energy that they explained. Both individual skin marker displacements and marker-cluster geometrical transformations were task-, location-, segment- and subject-specific. However, 85% of the total STA energy was systematically explained by the rigid transformations (i.e. translations and rotations of the marker-cluster). In conclusion, large joint dislocations and limited efficiency of least squares bone pose estimators are expected for the computation of upper limb joint kinematics from skin markers. Future developments shall consider the rigid transformations of marker-clusters in the implementation of an STA model to reduce its effects on kinematics estimation.

International audience; The aim of this study was to quantify the tibio-femoral contact point (CP) locations in healthy and osteoarthritic (OA) subjects during a weight-bearing squat using stand-alone biplanar X-ray images.Ten healthy and 9 severe OA subjects performed quasi-static squats. Bi-planar X-ray images were recorded at 0°, 15°, 30°, 45°, and 70° of knee flexion. A reconstruction/registration process was used to create 3D models of tibia, fibula, and femur from bi-planar X-rays and to measure their positions at each posture. A weighted centroid of proximity algorithm was used to calculate the tibio-femoral CP locations. The accuracy of the reconstruction/registration process in measuring the quasi-static kinematics and the contact parameters was evaluated in a validation study.The quasi-static kinematics data revealed that in OA knees, adduction angles were greater (p

The so-called soft tissue artefacts and wobbling masses have both been widely studied in biomechanics, however most of the time separately, from either a kinematics or a dynamics point of view. As such, the estimation of the stiffness of the springs connecting the wobbling masses to the rigid-body model of the lower limb, based on the in vivo displacements of the skin relative to the underling bone, has not been performed yet. For this estimation, the displacements of the skin markers in the bone-embedded coordinate systems are viewed as a proxy for the wobbling mass movement. The present study applied a structural vibration analysis method called smooth orthogonal decomposition to estimate this stiffness from retrospective simultaneous measurements of skin and intra-cortical pin markers during running, walking, cutting and hopping. For the translations about the three axes of the bone-embedded coordinate systems, the estimated stiffness coefficients (i.e. between 2.3kN/m and 55.5kN/m) as well as the corresponding forces representing the connection between bone and skin (i.e. up to 400N) and corresponding frequencies (i.e. in the band 10-30Hz) were in agreement with the literature. Consistently with the STA descriptions, the estimated stiffness coefficients were found subject- and task-specific.

This Special Issue of the Journal of Biomechanics reports an overview of the innovative research being conducted on a problem which every researcher reporting on the kinematics of humans and animals must cope with. The problem is rooted in our inability to directly observe the bones of our participants during the activities of interest and it represents a critical challenge since it is the motion of these underlying bones that is generally the nexus of our research.

International audience; 12 The primary role of the shoulder joint in tennis forehand drive is at the expense of the 13 loadings undergone by this joint. Nevertheless, few studies investigated glenohumeral (GH) 14 contact forces during forehand drives. The aim of this study was to investigate GH 15 compressive and shearing forces during the flat and topspin forehand drives in advanced 16 tennis players. 3D kinematics of flat and topspin forehand drives of 11 advanced tennis 17 players were recorded. The Delft Shoulder and Elbow musculoskeletal model was 18 implemented to assess the magnitude and orientation of GH contact forces during the 19 forehand drives. The results showed no differences in magnitude and orientation of GH 20 contact forces between the flat and topspin forehand drives. The estimated maximal GH 21 contact force during the forward swing phase was 3573 ± 1383 N, which was on average 1.25 22 time greater than during the follow-through phase, and 5.8 times greater than during the 23 backswing phase. Regardless the phase of the forehand drive, GH contact forces pointed 24 toward the anterior-superior part of the glenoid therefore standing for shearing forces. 25 Knowledge of GH contact forces during real sport tasks performed at high velocity may 26 improve the understanding of various sport-specific adaptations and causative factors for 27 shoulder problems. 28 2 29

International audience; To reduce the impact of the soft tissue artefact (STA) on the estimate of skeletal movement using stereophotogrammetric and skin-marker data, multi-body kinematics optimisation (MKO) and extended Kalman filters (EKF) have been proposed. This paper assessed the feasibility and efficiency of these methods when they embed a mathematical model of the STA and simultaneously estimate the ankle, knee and hip joint kinematics and the model parameters. A STA model was used that provides an estimate of the STA affecting the marker-cluster located on a body segment as a function of the kinematics of the adjacent joints. The MKO and the EKF were implemented with and without the STA model. To assess these methods, intra-cortical pin and skin markers located on the thigh, shank, and foot of three subjects and tracked during the stance phase of running were used. Embedding the STA model in MKO and EKF reduced the average RMS of marker tracking from 12.6 to 1.6mm and from 4.3 to 1.9mm, respectively, showing that a STA model trial-specific calibration is feasible. Nevertheless, with the STA model embedded in MKO, the RMS difference between the estimated and the reference joint kinematics determined from the pin markers slightly increased (from 2.0 to 2.1deg) On the contrary, when the STA model was embedded in the EKF, this RMS difference was slightly reduced (from 2.0 to 1.7deg) thus showing a better potentiality of this method to attenuate STA effects and improve the accuracy of joint kinematics estimate.

International audience; This paper presents a method allowing a simple and efficient sensitivity analysis of dynamics parameters of complex whole-body human model. The proposed method is based on the ground reaction and joint moment regressor matrices, developed initially in robotics system identification theory, and involved in the equations of motion of the human body. The regressor matrices are linear relatively to the segment inertial parameters allowing us to use simple sensitivity analysis methods. The sensitivity analysis method was applied over gait dynamics and kinematics data of nine subjects and with a 15 segments 3D model of the locomotor apparatus. According to the proposed sensitivity indices, 76 segments inertial parameters out the 150 of the mechanical model were considered as not influent for gait. The main findings were that the segment masses were influent and that, at the exception of the trunk, moment of inertia were not influent for the computation of the ground reaction forces and moments and the joint moments. The same method also shows numerically that at least 90% of the lower-limb joint moments during the stance phase can be estimated only from a force-plate and kinematics data without knowing any of the segment inertial parameters.

A 3D deformable model of the thigh's musculoskeletal system has been developed. An adjusted multibody rigid model was used to compute the bone kinematics and the muscle activation levels that drive a finite element model of the musculoskeletal system integrating contractile muscles. A thermomechanical beam model for muscle fibers was embedded in the passive muscle matrix meshed with hexahedrons with a hyperelastic quasiincompressible material law. Contacts between surrounding anatomical structures, transmitting radial forces, were modeled to investigate the effect of the interactions among muscles on the production of muscle forces. Two steps of the gait cycle were simulated. This study demonstrated that integrating such a deformable model could update the musculotendon forces traditionally computed from a multibody rigid model that fails to take into consideration 3D fiber distribution as well as muscle tightening effect.

Estimating joint kinematics from skin-marker trajectories recorded using stereophotogrammetry is complicated by soft tissue artefact (STA), an inexorable source of error. One solution is to use a bone pose estimator based on multi-body kinematics optimisation (MKO) embedding joint constraints to compensate for STA. However, there is some debate over the effectiveness of this method. The present study aimed to quantitatively assess the degree of agreement between reference (i.e., artefact-free) knee joint kinematics and the same kinematics estimated using MKO embedding six different knee joint models. The following motor tasks were assessed: level walking, hopping, cutting, running, sit-to-stand, and step-up. Reference knee kinematics was taken from pin-marker or biplane fluoroscopic data acquired concurrently with skin-marker data, made available by the respective authors. For each motor task, Bland-Altman analysis revealed that the performance of MKO varied according to the joint model used, with a wide discrepancy in results across degrees of freedom (DoFs), models and motor tasks (with a bias between -10.2° and 13.2° and between -10.2mm and 7.2mm, and with a confidence interval up to ±14.8° and ±11.1mm, for rotation and displacement, respectively). It can be concluded that, while MKO might occasionally improve kinematics estimation, as implemented to date it does not represent a reliable solution to the STA issue.

This paper describes and evaluates a parallel mechanism of the shoulder girdle. This mechanism was a closed kinematic chain composed of three segments (humerus, scapula and thorax) and three kinematic constraints. The clavicle was modelled as a constant length constraint between the sternoclavicular and acromioclavicular joint centres. The second kinematic constraint was also a constant length between the glenoid cavity and the humeral head for the glenohumeral joint. The third constraint was a point-on-ellipsoid contact for the scapulothoracic joint. Geometrical data required to build this kinematic model were obtained from the Visible Human Project. The parallel mechanism was then introduced into a multi-body optimisation for the computation of the scapulothoracic joint angles from surface sensors during the abduction of the arm of six able-bodied subjects. The initial guess of this optimisation was obtained by an acromial method. Compared to palpation of scapula anatomical landmarks, the multi-body optimisation with the proposed parallel mechanism allows estimating the shoulder kinematics with a better accuracy than the acromial method alone.

While reconstructing skeletal movement using stereophotogrammetry, the relative movement between a skin marker and the underlying bone is regarded as an artefact (soft tissue artefact: STA). Similarly, the consequent pose, size and shape variations that affect a cluster of markers associated with a bony segment, or any arbitrary change of configuration in the marker local positions as representative of the skin envelope shape variation, may also be looked upon as an STA. Bone pose estimators able to compensate for these artefacts must embed relevant a priori knowledge in the form of an STA mathematical model. Prior to tackling this modeling exercise, an appropriate definition and mathematical representation of the STA time histories must be accomplished. Relevant appropriateness is based on the degree of approximation of the STA reconstruction and on the number of parameters involved. The objective of this study was to propose a generalized mathematical representation of the STA which would be applicable for most plausible definitions of it. To this purpose, a modal approach was used that, most importantly, allows for the splitting of a given STA into additive components (modes). For each STA definition, these modes may be ranked according to the contribution that each of them gives to the reconstruction of the STA. In this way, the STA definition leading to the minimum number of modes, and, therefore, of parameters, that provides an adequate approximation for further purposes can be selected, allowing a trade-off between complexity and effectiveness of the STA model. Using information available in the literature and data provided by an ex-vivo experiment, it is shown that the modes corresponding to the different STA definitions (individual marker displacements, marker-cluster geometrical transformations, and skin envelope shape variations) can be ranked and selected leading, respectively, to a large, moderate or low number of parameters embedded in the STA mathematical representation.

Musculoskeletal modelling is a methodology used to investigate joint contact forces during a movement. High accuracy in the estimation of the hip or knee joint contact forces can be obtained with subject-specific models. However, construction of subject-specific models remains time consuming and expensive. The purpose of this systematic review of the literature was to identify what alterations can be made on generic (i.e. literature-based, without any subject-specific measurement other than body size and weight) musculoskeletal models to obtain a better estimation of the joint contact forces. The impact of these alterations on the accuracy of the estimated joint contact forces were appraised. The systematic search yielded to 141 articles and 24 papers were included in the review. Different strategies of alterations were found: skeletal and joint model (e.g. number of degrees of freedom, knee alignment), muscle model (e.g. Hill-type muscle parameters, level of muscular redundancy), and optimisation problem (e.g. objective function, design variables, constraints). All these alterations had an impact on joint contact force accuracy, so demonstrating the potential for improving the model predictions without necessarily involving costly and time consuming medical images. However, due to discrepancies in the reported evidence about this impact and despite a high quality of the reviewed studies, it was not possible to highlight any trend defining which alteration had the largest impact.

Few studies have focused on the effect of posture during sprint start. The aim of this study was to measure the effect of the modification of horizontal distance between the blocks during sprint start on three dimensional (3D) joint angular velocity. Nine trained sprinters started using three different starting positions (bunched, medium and elongated). They were equipped with 63 passive reflective markers, and an opto-electronic Motion Analysis1 system was used to collect the 3D marker trajectories. During the pushing phase on the blocks, norm of the joint angular velocity (NJAV), 3D Euler angular velocity (EAV) and pushing time on the blocks were calculated. The results demonstrated that the decrease of the block spacing induces an opposite effect on the angular velocity of joints of the lower and the upper limbs. The NJAV of the upper limbs is greater in the bunched start, whereas the NJAV of the lower limbs is smaller. The modifications of NJAV were due to a combination of the movement of the joints in the different degrees of freedom. The medium start seems to be the best compromise because it leads, in a short pushing time, to a combination of optimal joint velocities for upper and lower segments.