title: The Use of Wearable Microsensors to Quantify Sport-Specific Movements.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Microtechnology has allowed sport scientists to understand the locomotor demands of various sports. While wearable global positioning technology has been used to quantify the locomotor demands of sporting activities, microsensors (i.e. accelerometers, gyroscopes and magnetometers) embedded within the units also have the capability to detect sport-specific movements.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The objective of this study was to determine the extent to which microsensors (also referred to as inertial measurement units and microelectromechanical sensors) have been utilised in quantifying sport-specific movements.
  
  
  METHODS
  A systematic review of the use of microsensors and associated terms to evaluate sport-specific movements was conducted; permutations of the terms used included alternate names of the various technologies used, their applications and different applied environments. Studies for this review were published between 2008 and 2014 and were identified through a systematic search of six electronic databases: Academic Search Complete, CINAHL, PsycINFO, PubMed, SPORTDiscus, and Web of Science. Articles were required to have used athlete-mounted sensors to detect sport-specific movements (e.g. rugby union tackle) rather than sensors mounted to equipment and monitoring generic movement patterns.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A total of 2395 studies were initially retrieved from the six databases and 737 results were removed as they were duplicates, review articles or conference abstracts. After screening titles and abstracts of the remaining papers, the full text of 47 papers was reviewed, resulting in the inclusion of 28 articles that met the set criteria around the application of microsensors for detecting sport-specific movements. Eight articles addressed the use of microsensors within individual sports, team sports provided seven results, water sports provided eight articles, and five articles addressed the use of microsensors in snow sports. All articles provided evidence of the ability of microsensors to detect sport-specific movements. Results demonstrated varying purposes for the use of microsensors, encompassing the detection of movement and movement frequency, the identification of movement errors and the assessment of forces during collisions.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This systematic review has highlighted the use of microsensors to detect sport-specific movements across a wide range of individual and team sports. The ability of microsensors to capture sport-specific movements emphasises the capability of this technology to provide further detail on athlete demands and performance. However, there was mixed evidence on the ability of microsensors to quantify some movements (e.g. tackling within rugby union, rugby league and Australian rules football). Given these contrasting results, further research is required to validate the ability of wearable microsensors containing accelerometers, gyroscopes and magnetometers to detect tackles in collision sports, as well as other contact events such as the ruck, maul and scrum in rugby union.
authors.affiliation: Welsh Rugby Union, Westgate Street, Cardiff, Wales.
authors.forename: Ryan
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Chambers
authors.forename: Tim J
authors.initials: TJ
authors.lastname: Gabbett
authors.forename: Michael H
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Cole
authors.forename: Adam
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Beard
mesh_terms: D056352:Athletes; D006801:Humans; D009068:Movement / Q000502:physiology*; D012815:Signal Processing, Computer-Assisted / Q000295:instrumentation*; D013177:Sports / Q000502:physiology*
references.citation: J Sports Sci. 2014;32(10):947-53
references.pmid: 24499311
references.citation: J Sci Med Sport. 2012 Jan;15(1):80-6
references.pmid: 21820959
references.citation: Int J Sports Physiol Perform. 2011 Sep;6(3):311-21
references.pmid: 21911857
references.citation: J Sci Med Sport. 2010 Sep;13(5):531-6
references.pmid: 19897414
references.citation: J Strength Cond Res. 2014 Oct;28(10):2732-7
references.pmid: 24983848
references.citation: Sleep. 1996 Nov;19(9):739-43
references.pmid: 9122562
references.citation: Int J Sports Physiol Perform. 2014 Nov;9(6):905-12
references.pmid: 24589469
references.citation: J Sports Sci. 2013;31(11):1251-60
references.pmid: 23560703
references.citation: Sports Med. 2014 Jul;44(7):989-1003
references.pmid: 24715614
references.citation: J Sports Sci. 2009 Nov;27(13):1455-61
references.pmid: 19787541
references.citation: Int J Sports Physiol Perform. 2010 Mar;5(1):75-86
references.pmid: 20308698
references.citation: J Sci Med Sport. 2013 Nov;16(6):589-93
references.pmid: 23433634
references.citation: Sensors (Basel). 2013 Nov 26;13(12):16065-74
references.pmid: 24287531
references.citation: Biol Sport. 2014 Mar;31(1):55-62
references.pmid: 24917690
references.citation: Int J Sports Physiol Perform. 2014 Mar;9(2):283-91
references.pmid: 23799824
references.citation: Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2009 Sep;41(9):1770-7
references.pmid: 19657292
references.citation: J Sci Med Sport. 2014 Mar;17(2):234-8
references.pmid: 23707140
references.citation: J Strength Cond Res. 2013 Aug;27(8):2319-22
references.pmid: 23090320
references.citation: Sensors (Basel). 2012;12 (4):5047-66
references.pmid: 22666075
references.citation: Sensors (Basel). 2012 Sep 25;12(10):12927-39
references.pmid: 23201978
references.citation: J Sci Med Sport. 2010 Nov;13(6):578-83
references.pmid: 20483661
references.citation: Sports Med. 2013 Oct;43(10):1025-42
references.pmid: 23812857
references.citation: Int J Sports Physiol Perform. 2015 Jan;10(1):71-5
references.pmid: 24911322
references.citation: J Sports Sci. 2009 Aug;27(10):1051-8
references.pmid: 19642049
references.citation: Obesity (Silver Spring). 2007 Oct;15(10):2371-9
references.pmid: 17925461
references.citation: J Sports Sci. 2012;30(1):53-61
references.pmid: 22168430
references.citation: J Sci Med Sport. 2010 Mar;13(2):270-3
references.pmid: 19574098
references.citation: Hum Mov Sci. 2013 Aug;32(4):741-52
references.pmid: 23810716
references.citation: J Strength Cond Res. 2009 Jul;23(4):1195-203
references.pmid: 19528840