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Movement Biomechanics of Human Gait
Movement Biomechanics of Human Gait
of Human Gait
SP2004N Biomechanics
http://homepages.unl.ac.uk/~woodwarc
1
Plan
7
Walking and running efficiency
8
Forces
• The principal forces are:
– body weight (BW)
– ground reaction force (GRF)
– muscle force (MF)
9
Vitally important point:
10
The gait mechanism: an
overview
• Walking is a precise, co-ordinated set of movements
involving multiple joints and body segments
• It comprises a pattern of alternating action of the two
lower limbs
• Pendulum-like movements of the limbs give rise to
two distinct phases: swing and support (or stance)
• In walking, but not running, the support phases of the
two legs overlap
11
Walking as a “controlled fall”
• One way of beginning to understand the mechanics of
walking is to view the movements as a “controlled fall”
• When starting a walk, we lean forward, overbalancing
from the equilibrium position.
• This gives the upper part of the body forwards (and
downwards) motion
• As the body falls forwards, a leg is extended forwards and
halts the fall
• At the same time, the other leg “kicks off” in order to keep
the body moving forwards.
• This forward momentum carries the body forward into the
next forward fall, i.e. the start of the next step
12
Walking as a controlled fall:
forces involved
• When starting to move, we lean forward (MF)
• As the body starts to fall (BW), a leg is extended
forwards and halts the fall (MF; GRF)
• At the same time, the other leg “kicks off, upwards
and forwards” (MF; GRF) in order to keep the body
moving forwards.
• This forward momentum carries the body forward into
the next forward fall, i.e. the start of the next step
13
Body weight
14
Ground reaction force
“Action” force
• Push exerted on ground by foot
• Results from the sum of the following
Body weight
+ impact force of foot on ground (at footstrike only)
+ “pushing force” from contraction of extensor
muscles (towards end of stance phase)
“Reaction” force
• Push exerted by ground on foot, as a consequence of Newton’s
3rd Law.
• Equal magnitude, opposite direction, same point of application
as action force.
• If line of the reaction force does not pass through a joint, it will
produce a torque about that joint
15
Muscle force
In gait, as in all human movement, muscle
activation generates internal joint moments
(torques) that:
– Contribute to ground reaction force
– Ensure balance
– Increase energy economy
– Allow flexible gait patterns
– Slow down and/or prevent limb movements
• When the extensors relax, on the other hand, body weight cannot be
effectively transmitted to the foot (because there is no longer a rigid
body structure to transmit it. Hence:
GRF = equal and opposite force to that exerted by foot on ground (by
definition)
< body weight
18
To summarise:
• Upwards GRF = BW
– The CoM of the body will remain at the same height (or
remain moving at the same rate)
• Upwards GRF > BW (e.g. jumping)
– The CoM of the body will move upwards (or downwards
movement of the CoM will be slowed or halted)
• Upwards GRF< BW (e.g. squatting)
– The CoM of the body will move downwards (or upwards
movement of the CoM will be slowed or halted)
19
Static posture: GRF Downwards Upwards
equal and opposite squat: movement:
to BW. GRF<BW GRF>BW
20
Butterfly diagram- showing GRF through
the stance (support) phase
The lines represent GRF
force vectors at intervals
off about 50 ms during the
stance phase
The line at the extreme left
hand end represents the
force vector at the
moment the foot touches
the ground. The next one
represent GRF 50 ms
later, and so on.
The line at the extreme
right-hand end represents
the GRF when the toe
leaves the ground.
Remember: vector lines incorporate three aspects of
the force they represent: magnitude (=length of line),
point of action, and direction of action 21
Butterfly diagram- showing GRF
through the stance (support) phase
22
Resolving the GRF into vertical and
horizontal components
• “A” represents the GRF at the moment of
footstrike (see slide 20).
• It is made up of a horizontal component (C)
and a vertical component (B).
• In terms of force vectors, we can write:
A=B+C
(Note that this is not normal arithmetic
addition because it also takes account of the
relative directions of A, B and C)
• Geometrically, the arrowhead ends of A, B,
and C, together with the common point of
origin of the four forces, form the corners of a
rectangle.
• This fact enables us to calculate the
magnitude of B and C, provided we know A. 23
Resolving the GRF into vertical and
horizontal components
• Both the horizontal and vertical components of the
GRF vary during the stance phase
• The direction of the horizontal component (i.e.
forwards or backwards) tells us whether the body is
accelerating or decelerating in its forwards movement
at that moment of time
• The magnitude of the vertical component (and
specifically whether it is greater or less than body
weight) tells us what is happening to the vertical
movement of the body
24
GRF during the contact phase
• Initially GRF acts diagonally backwards and upwards, from the heel.
The horizontal component acts backwards, and the vertical component
is greater than that of body weight. GRF at this moment therefore:
– stops the “controlled downwards fall” of the body
– exerts a braking, or slowing, effect on forward movement
• During the middle of the stance phase the GRF:
– remains > body weight and therefore the CoM is lifted up slightly in
midstance.
– point of action moves forward from the heel.
– line of action becomes more nearly vertical and therefore the
braking/slowing effect disappears
• After the midpoint of the stance phase the vertical component of GRF
falls (< body weight) as the leg passes the vertical position and the
CoM moves downwards.
• At the end of the stance phase, the GRF increases in magnitude again,
acting forwards and upwards. This gives the necessary propulsive
force to stop downwards movement of the CoM, and to to keep the
body moving forwards.
25
Changes in the Centre of
Pressure (CoP)
26
CoP scans:
Red line shows passage of
CoP during a single stance
phase
Colours denote peak
pressures achieved at
different points on the foot.
27
Determinants of Gait
28
DG1: Pelvic tilt
• Reduces the vertical
movements of the upper body,
and thereby increases energy
efficiency.
• The pelvis slopes downwards
laterally towards the leg which is
in swing phase. i.e. rotation
about an anterior-posterior axis
• Only anatomically possible if the
swing leg can be shortened
sufficiently (principally by knee
flexion) to clear the ground.
• Where this is not possible (e.g.
through injury), the absence of
pelvic tilt and pronounced
movements of the upper body
are obvious.
29
DG2: Pelvic rotation
• Rotation about a
vertical axis enables a
given step length to be
achieved with less
vertical excursion of the
trunk.
• Alternatively, longer
step lengths can be
achieved for the same
vertical movement.
30
DG3: Knee flexion in stance
phase
• As the hip joint
passes over the foot
during the support
phase, there is some
flexion of the knee.
• This reduces vertical
movements at the hip,
and therefore of the
trunk and head.
31
DG4: Ankle mechanism
• At footstrike, the
effective length of the
leg is increased by the
projection of the
calcaneus behind the
ankle.
32
DG5: Forefoot mechanism
33
DG6: Reduced lateral pelvic
displacement
• Is minimised by having
a narrow walking base
i.e. feet closer together
than are hips.
• Therefore less energy
is used moving hip from
side to side (less lateral
movement needed to
balance body over
stance foot.
• Enabled by valgus
angulation at the knee
34
Efficiency, and energy considerations
35
Gait efficiency & pendulum action
• A pendulum is an object, swinging from a fulcrum,
under the influence of gravity.
• A pendulum has a natural frequency of swing that is
dependent on its mass, and the distance from the
fulcrum to its CoM.
• During the swing of a pendulum, potential and kinetic
energy are interconverted and therefore, overall,
energy is conserved.
• Both the upper and lower limbs of the human body can
move with pendulum motion, with or without muscle
assistance.
36
A conventional pendulum –
energy interconversion
P.E. – Potential energy
K.E. – Kinetic energy
38
An “inverted” pendulum
The pendulum
“bounces”
backwards and
forwards, using
the springs.
39
“Inverted” pendulum action
during the stance phase
• During the stance phase, the leg can be viewed as an “inverted
pendulum”.
• The forward momentum of the body gives it the necessary initial
angular velocity of rotation (taking the place of the “spring” on the
previous slide).
• “Inverted” pendulum action also involves inter-conversion of
potential and kinetic energy, but in this case (unlike a conventional
pendulum) KE reaches a minimum at the midpoint of the motion,
and PE is highest at that point.
• When reaching the endpoint of its “inverted swing” the stance leg
does not swing back, as a real inverted pendulum would, because
the foot is taken off the floor, the fulcrum transfers from the foot to
the hip, and the leg swings again as a conventional pendulum.
40
Walking Slow
modelled as a
rolling lemon
Pendulum considerations help
us understand energy
efficiency by concentrating on
the individual legs.
But ultimately we need to
consider the energy of the
Fast
whole body
A simple model that allows this
is that of a rolling ellipse, with
the midpoint of the ellipse
representing the CoM of the
body
41
Walking modelled
as a rolling lemon:
midstance
42
Walking modelled as
a rolling lemon:
early/late stance
Towards the beginning or end
of the stance phase for either
leg, the CoM is lower.
Therefore the PE for the whole
body is reduced, and KE
(forwards movement velocity )
relatively high
43
Running
46
Stride rate and length
48
GRF during running
Compared with walking:
49
Energy considerations during
running
• Energy usage differs fundamentally between running
and walking
• In running, both kinetic and potential energy are high
during the flight phase.
• Energy storage in elastic tissues at the start of the
support phase has a more prominent role in running.
• By contrast, elastic energy storage during walking is
smaller – in fact we ignored it altogether when
considering this topic earlier.
50
Energy during running: the
bouncing ball model
Contrast this with the
rolling lemon model for
walking.
Here, KE and PE are
both high at the top of
the “bounces”
(equivalent to the middle
of the flight phase)
During ground contact,
KE and PE are lower,
and energy is stored in
So, for running, we have to consider
elastic tissues.
interconversion between three different
forms of energy: PE, KE and elastic
51
Walking and running energy costs
52
Elastic energy storage during running
• Total kinetic energy dissipation at footstrike= 100 J/pace (70 kg subject;
4.5. m s-1)
• At start of support phase, elastic energy (from the foot impact) is stored
in:
– Achilles tendon ~35J
– Patellar tendon ~20J
– Arch of foot ~17J
TOTAL ~72J
54
Experimental data on elastic
force and the Achilles tendon
• Marathon runner (2h 37 min)
• Peak force on ball of foot = 2.7×BW (=1900 N)
• Peak force in Achilles tendon = 4700 N
• Minimum cross sectional area of tendon = 90mm2
• Force per unit cross-section area = 50 N mm-2
• This will stretch tendon by 6%
• Margin of safety is about 100% i.e. tendon will rupture at
about 100 N mm-2
55
Running shoes and elastic
energy storage
56
References
59
Swing phase: the hip
61
Swing phase: the knee
62
Knee movements during swing phase:
flexion initially, and then extension
63
Swing phase: ankle and foot
Movements:
• Dorsiflexion (for ground clearance and for ankle mechanism -
DG4).
Muscle actions:
• Tibialis anterior at start of swing (ground clearance, related to
pelvic tilt)
• activity tapers off in mid-swing
• contracts again for footstrike (prevention of footslap; stabilise
heelstrike).
64
Swing phase ankle movements:
dorsiflexion
65
Principal events during the stance
phase
1. Heelstrike
2. Foot-flat (followed by opposite toe-off)
3. Heel-rise (followed by opposite heelstrike)
4. Toe-off
66
Principal events during the stance phase:
heel-strike, foot-flat, heel-rise, toe-off
67
Stance phase: the hip
69
Stance phase: the knee
71
Stance phase: ankle movements
72
Stance phase – the ankle:
neutral at foot-strike; then plantarflexion as foot goes flat;
73
Stance phase – the ankle:
then dorsiflexion as upper body swings over
….………….and finally plantarflexion as heel lifts off
74
Stance phase: ankle muscle actions
76
Running: swing phase
• Muscular rather than pendular motion at hip.
• Knee flexion, and ankle dorsiflexion, bring CoM of the
leg closer to the hip. This reduces moment of inertia
and increases angular velocity.
• Knee movements largely passive (i.e not due to
muscle activity), and result from transfer of
momentum from thigh.
• Depending on the speed of running, initial ground
contact may be with heel, whole foot, or ball of foot.
77
Running: support phase
78