title: Comparison of tri-axial accelerometers step-count accuracy in slow walking conditions.
abstract: Accelerometers have shown great promise and popularity for monitoring gait. However, the accuracy of accelerometers for gait analysis in slow walking conditions is largely unknown. In this study, we compared the accuracy of three accelerometers recommended for gait analysis - Axivity AX3, APDM Opal, and the Actigraph wGT3X-BT, by holding the step-count algorithm constant. We evaluated device accuracy in four minutes of treadmill walking at the speeds of 0.9m/s, 1.1m/s, and 1.3m/s. We constructed a symbolization of the gait data to count the steps using Piecewise Aggregate Approximation and compared the estimated step counts with observer counted steps from video recordings. Our results highlight the variation between the performance of devices - the Axivity AX3 provides more accurate step counts than the other two devices. In this, we provide evidence for future scientific teams to make decisions on selecting accelerometers which can more accurately measure steps taken at slower walking speeds, and suggest ways to improve the design of algorithms and accelerometers.
authors.affiliation: Department of Information Systems, University of Maryland, Baltimore County, 1000 Hilltop Circle, Baltimore, MD, 21250, USA. Electronic address: fengy1@umbc.edu.
authors.forename: Yuanyuan
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Feng
authors.affiliation: Department of Information Systems, University of Maryland, Baltimore County, 1000 Hilltop Circle, Baltimore, MD, 21250, USA. Electronic address: cwong@umbc.edu.
authors.forename: Christopher K
authors.initials: CK
authors.lastname: Wong
authors.affiliation: Department of Information Systems, University of Maryland, Baltimore County, 1000 Hilltop Circle, Baltimore, MD, 21250, USA. Electronic address: vjaneja@umbc.edu.
authors.forename: Vandana
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Janeja
authors.affiliation: Department of Information Systems, University of Maryland, Baltimore County, 1000 Hilltop Circle, Baltimore, MD, 21250, USA. Electronic address: rkuber@umbc.edu.
authors.forename: Ravi
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Kuber
authors.affiliation: Department of Information Systems, University of Maryland, Baltimore County, 1000 Hilltop Circle, Baltimore, MD, 21250, USA. Electronic address: mentis@umbc.edu.
authors.forename: Helena M
authors.initials: HM
authors.lastname: Mentis
mesh_terms: D061725:Accelerometry / Q000295:instrumentation*; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000465:Algorithms; D005080:Exercise Test / Q000295:instrumentation; D005260:Female; D005684:Gait; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D014741:Video Recording; D016138:Walking; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Accelerometers; Device comparison; Piecewise Aggregate Approximation; Step count