Characterization of the fiber-optic goniometer for measuring knee joint angle

Abstract

Gait disturbance is typical symptom of the degenerative cerebropathia such as Alzheimer's disease, dementia, and Parkinson's disease. Thus measuring the activity of the knee joint is important to make a diagnosis for these diseases. In this study, the fiber-optic goniometer was developed using a plastic optical fiber, a light emitting diode, and a photodiode to measure knee joint angles. To evaluate the fiber-optic goniometer, we measured knee angles using the fiber-optic goniometer and 3-D IR motion camera in walking and cycling. As a result, patterns of knee joint angle obtained by the fiber-optic goniometer during walking and cycling corresponded with those obtained by the 3-D IR motion camera. In terms of sampling resolution and error occurrence, the fiber-optic goniometer fabricated through this study can be used in diagnosis of degenerative cerebropathia. Copyright © 2015 American Scientific Publishers All rights reserved.