Kamiar Aminian, Ph.D.

Realworld movement analysis in health, ageing and disease using body worn sensors: from step counting to 3D motion tracking

Sensors such as the accelerometer have been widely used over the last 30 years for activity monitoring, mainly as actimeters for step counting. More recently, the field has taken giant leaps forward through the use of wearable inertial sensors. These sensors extend the movement monitoring and analysis palette offered by lab motion capture techniques to real-world conditions. Advanced and powerful algorithms could be devised for 3D tracking of body movement by combining biomechanical knowledge with multi-sensory information such as acceleration, angular velocity, elevation, location, force and pressure. This makes wearable sensors ideal tools for long-term monitoring of daily activity. In my talk, apart from touching upon the above aspects, I will focus on methods and advanced algorithms used in real-world conditions for gait analysis, activity monitoring, and sport performance evaluation. By emphasizing the translational aspect of wearable technology in health and disease, my talk aims at demonstrating the potential and maturity of wearable inertial sensors to fulfill clinical needs.

Biography

Kamiar Aminian headshotKamiar Aminian is currently a Professor with the Institute of Bioengineering and the Director of the Laboratory of Movement Analysis and Measurement at EPFL. His research focuses on methodologies for human movement monitoring and analysis in real world conditions mainly based on wearable technologies, with an emphasis on gait, physical activity, and sport. His research aims to perform outcome evaluation in orthopaedics, to improve motor function and intervention programs in aging and patients with movement disorders and pain, and to identify metrics of performance in sport science. He is teaching in the areas of physiology and instrumentation, medical devices, biomechanics, and sports. He has authored or co-authored over 500 scientific papers published in reviewed journals, and presented at the international conferences and holds 11 patents related to medical devices.