Monitoring of plantar forces and surfboard's movement: Alternative to understand the injuries mechanism

Abstract

The concern about injuries in sport are evident due to the implications it carries. To have the knowledge of the mechanisms of injuries is important either to prevent and recovery. This context generates the appropriate scenario to develop an electronic solution to measure dynamically the Center of Pressure (CoP) and surfboard's movement and support the understanding of the mechanisms responsible for the occurrence of injuries. Two matrices composed by 24 force sensors and Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) controlled by ATEMEGA1280 microcontroller were developed. This system was tested using a dynamic protocol using one unstable structure at the bottom of the surfboard. The results have shown that the CoP displacement was largest during the tests that presented great rotation changes. Furthermore, the power oscillations were greater during transition moments. The proposed system is able to measure biomechanical variables dynamically, i.e., force, and surfboard's angle pitch and roll. This report reviews the surf injuries in literature and describes the electronic device used beyond to present the results of the tests performed. © 2014 IEEE.