S4 Tutorial Lecture TL03

Human locomotion
Professor Alberto Minetti
University of Milan, Italy, Institute of Human Physiology, Faculty of Medicine,

The tutorial will provide a biomechanical and bioenergetical overview of different aspects of human
locomotion:
1. evolution of the research approach to locomotion: early findings and bioenergetics of different
gaits in many conditions
2. biomechanical methodologies: their goals, scope and limitations in describing and explaining
human locomotion
3. the body centre of mass movement: the related locomotor paradigms and the 3D Lissajous
contours as a gait evaluation tool
4. the analogies and differences between human and animal locomotion
5. current concepts in locomotion: success stories in explaining some gait phenomena and
optimization
6. the open mistery of loaded walking: what makes experienced porters so economical?
7. ideas and experiments challenging established theories: elastic walking, inelastic running and
pendulum/elastic skipping
8. the challenge to tackle aquatic and aerial locomotion: an energetic framework helps to infer
their cost of transport
9. future perspectives in locomotion research

Multimedia and simulations will be used to illustrate the quoted topics.

Journal of Biomechanics 40(S2) XXI ISB Congress, Plenary Sessions, Tutorials and Keynote Lectures, Sunday 1 July 2007