The relation between trunk sway and the motion of centre of pressure during quiet stance

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to identify the relationships between trunk sway (TS) and the motion of center of pressure (COP) during quiet upright stance. Eight young healthy subjects (averaged 24±6.7 years) including 3 females were recruited for this study. By comparing TS with COP, we found that TS is moving in phase with COP both in lateral and sagittal plane. On the basis of observations that the COP-TS error signal is very similar to the changes of friction between the feet and floor. We also found that the friction is the impetus of trunk sway obeying the Newton's law. Then, a dynamic model between TS and COP can be identified. The results showed that TS and the motion of COP are in accordance with a specific differential equation. Supporting TS is v and COP is u, then u can be expressed as: u=(Equation Presented)v+ hv, where H, k, h are constants, m is the body mass. The simulation results fitted the experimental findings very well. The results suggested that TS instead of COP is a promising index for human standing ability assessment.