The kinematics of cyclic human movement

Models describing cyclic movement can roughly be divided into the categories theory or data driven. Theory driven models include anatomical and physiological aspects. They are principally suitable for answering questions about the reasons for movement characteristics. But, they are complicated and substantial simplifications do not allow generally valid results. Data driven models allow answering specific questions but lack the understanding of the general movement characteristic. With this paper we try a compromise not having to rely on anatomy, neurology and muscle function. We hypothesize a general kinematic description of cyclic human motion is possible without having to specify the movement generating processes, and still getting the kinematic right. The model proposed consisting of a superposition of six contributions – subject’s attractor, morphing, short time fluctuation, transient effect, control mechanism and sensor noise -, with characterizing numbers and random contributions. We test the model with data form treadmill running and stationary biking. Applying the model in form of a simulation results in good agreement between measured data and simulation values.