title: A preliminary study to demonstrate the use of an air bag device to prevent fall-related injuries.
abstract: We sought to develop a fall-related injury prevention system using a telemetry acceleration monitor and an air bag. In a preliminary study, we developed a fall detection system using an acceleration signal and triggering the inflation of an air bag. Sixteen subjects mimicked falls and their acceleration waveforms were monitored. Then, we developed a fall detection algorithm that could detect signals 300 ms before the fall. This signal was used as a trigger to inflate the air bag to a capacity of 2.4 L. While the proposed system can aid in preventing fall-related injuries, further development is needed to miniaturize the inflation system.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Engineering, Chiba University, Graduate School of Engineering, Chiba, Japan. tamurat@faculty.chiba-u.jp
authors.forename: Toshiyo
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Tamura
authors.forename: Takumi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Yoshimura
authors.forename: Masaki
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sekine
mesh_terms: D000058:Accidental Falls; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D017278:Air Bags; D000465:Algorithms; D005260:Female; D006299:Health Services for the Aged; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012815:Signal Processing, Computer-Assisted / Q000295:instrumentation; D013686:Telemetry / Q000379:methods*; D014947:Wounds and Injuries / Q000517:prevention & control*