Easy-to-install system for daily walking ability assessment using a distance sensor array

Abstract

Walking is a fundamental daily activity of humans. Therefore, the walking ability is regarded as a valuable predictor of mortality rate and activities of daily living (ADL). In this paper, we propose a walking ability assessment system that can be installed easily in a home. The main component of this system is a low-cost distance sensor array, which allows walking speed and step length measurements. Furthermore, the proposed system can accurately extract regular walking data. Results of an experiment conducted with elderly people show that the system has adequate performance; Mean absolute relative errors are 6.5% (walking speed) and 3.8% (step length). Those superior results demonstrate that the proposed system can be a promising tool for daily assessment of walking ability.