Joint forces in the human pelvis-leg skeleton during walking

Area of Science:

• Biomechanics
• Human movement analysis
• Orthopedic biomechanics

Background:

• Accurate calculation of hip, knee, and ankle joint forces during walking is essential for understanding lower limb function.
• Knowledge of three-dimensional human body movements and foot-ground forces is a prerequisite for these calculations.

Purpose of the Study:

• To present methods for obtaining necessary kinematic and ground reaction force data for joint force calculations.
• To apply an optimization method to calculate forces within the statically indeterminate system of the lower limbs.
• To analyze the relationship between joint forces and gait parameters.

Main Methods:

• Obtaining three-dimensional kinematic data of the human body.
• Measuring forces between the foot and ground.
• Applying an optimization method to minimize muscle forces for calculating joint and muscle forces in the lower limbs.
• Conducting measurements on 22 individuals (17 male, 5 female).

Main Results:

• Demonstration of obtainable accuracy for movement and force data.
• Presentation of maximum joint forces plotted against gait speed, body weight, and body size.
• Inclusion of statistical distributions for joint forces.

Conclusions:

• The study provides a methodology for calculating lower limb joint forces during walking.
• The optimization approach offers a way to determine muscle and joint forces in a complex biomechanical system.
• Results highlight the influence of gait speed, body weight, and size on joint forces.