Wearable and wireless performance evaluation system for sports science with an example in badminton

Area of Science:

• Sports Science
• Wearable Technology
• Biomechanical Analysis

Background:

• Accurate force measurement in sports is crucial for performance analysis and injury prevention.
• Existing systems often lack wearability, wireless capabilities, or detailed force distribution data.
• Developing a system for real-time, localized force sensing on the hand is needed.

Purpose of the Study:

• To design, fabricate, and validate a wearable, wireless capacitive force sensing system for sports applications.
• To assess the system's ability to measure localized force distribution on finger segments during dynamic movements.
• To demonstrate the system's effectiveness in differentiating player skill levels and technique stability in badminton.

Main Methods:

• Designed and fabricated flexible capacitive sensing units integrated into fingerstalls using microelectronic and additive manufacturing.
• Developed a wireless transmission system incorporating a signal converter and Bluetooth module.
• Collected capacitive signals during badminton forehand shots and analyzed force distributions using a pre-established database.

Main Results:

• The system successfully captured localized force distributions on finger segments during badminton play.
• Quantified results showed significant differences in valid shot percentages (67% professional, 39% amateur) and force application stability between skill levels.
• Demonstrated the system's capability to distinguish between professional and amateur players and assess technique consistency.

Conclusions:

• The developed wearable wireless force sensing system offers superior performance compared to existing market alternatives.
• The system provides valuable scientific evidence for classifying player skill levels and evaluating technique stability in sports science.
• This technology enables objective, data-driven insights into athletic performance and biomechanics.