Speaker:

Lars Muendermann, Cymicon

Title:

Markerless motion capture for sport and biomechanical applications

Location:

Archway 2 - 1:00 pm, Friday 30 May

Abstract:

Over the last several centuries our understanding of human locomotion has been a function of the methods to capture human movement that were available at the time. The Weber brothers (1836) reported one of the first quantitative studies of the temporal and distance parameters during human locomotion. The works of two contemporaries, Marey (1873) and Muybridge (1878), were among the first to quantify patterns of human movement using photographic techniques.

Today most common methods for accurate capture of three-dimensional human movement require a laboratory environment and the attachment of markers or fixtures to the body's segments. These laboratory conditions can cause unknown experimental artifacts. Modern biomechanical and clinical applications require the accurate capture of normal and pathological human movement without the artifacts associated with standard marker-based motion capture techniques such as soft tissue artifacts and the risk of artificial stimulus of taped-on or strapped-on markers.

The need for accurate information on the characteristics of normal and pathological human is motivated in part by the introduction of new clinical approaches for the treatment and prevention of diseases that are influenced by subtle changes in the patterns movement. The need for markerless human motion capture methods is discussed and the advancement of markerless approaches is considered in view of accurate capture of three-dimensional human movement for biomechanical applications. The role of choosing appropriate technical equipment and algorithms for accurate markerless motion capture is critical. The implementation of this new methodology offers the promise for simple, time-efficient, and potentially more meaningful assessments of human movement in research and clinical practice. The feasibility of accurately and precisely measuring 3D human body kinematics using a markerless motion capture system is demonstrated.