@article{ref1,
title="Portable electronic device to assess the human balance using a minimum number of sensors",
journal="Biomedical physics and engineering express",
year="2020",
author="Portillo-Rodríguez, Otniel and Martínez-Méndez, Rigoberto and Estévez-Pedraza, Ángel Gabriel and Parra-Rodríguez, Lorena and Rodríguez-Arce, Jorge",
volume="6",
number="1",
pages="e015027-e015027",
abstract="OBJECTIVE: This paper presents the design and development of a new electronic portable device to assess the human balance of the human body during standing, using  a minimal number of sensors and peripheral components. This device is aimed to  evaluate human balance in environments outside of specialized laboratories, such as  small clinics and therapy offices. APPROACH: The design is based on previous designs  using three or more resistive force sensors attached to the feet, however in the  present work, the sensors were attached on an adjustable platform, to fit several  sizes of feet. Furthermore, all the signal acquisition, process, storage and display  are executed by an embedded electronic system, thus avoiding the use of computers  and external peripherals. A new method to compute the CoP using only two sensors per  foot was developed and tested in a group of 50 university students, (17 women and 33  men), 26.04 ± 4.94 years. MAIN RESULTS: It was developed a portable electronic  system to measure the trajectory of the CoP and to calculate the indexes values  derived from it. The system is capable to discriminate between measuring situations  (open and closed eyes), using only two sensors per foot (p < 0.0001). A comparison  between the values obtained for young subjects using the proposed device, and the  values reported in the literature showed a similar tendency. SIGNIFICANCE: The  results indicate that the proposed system is a good, low-cost, and easy-to-use  alternative tool for researchers and clinicians interested in the evaluation of  human balance, especially if the measurements must be done outside laboratories.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>",
language="en",
issn="2057-1976",
doi="10.1088/2057-1976/ab6858",
url="http://dx.doi.org/10.1088/2057-1976/ab6858"
}