Abstract
Virtual reality (VR) has been increasingly used for rehabilitative gait training, however, and only training on a unidirectional treadmill limit the replication of real-world walking. Thus, the omnidirectional frictionless treadmills allow users to slide on a concave surface enhancing the VR experience while imposing new gait challenges. PURPOSE: The purpose of this study is to examine the differences in gait kinematics and muscle activation in healthy participants between omnidirectional treadmills and traditional modalities like conventional treadmills and overground. We hypothesize that there will be a significant difference in cadence and gastrocnemius muscle activity between the omnidirectional treadmill with virtual reality and the overground and conventional treadmill. METHODS: Fourteen young, healthy individuals (8 males, 6 females, 25.8 ± 3.7 years old) participated in this study. All participants completed 12 walking conditions, including three different treadmills/surfaces: overground, unidirectional conventional treadmill, and an omnidirectional treadmill. Within each treadmill condition, participants walked at both preferred and fixed cadences, and in both real-world and VR environments. Each condition was repeated three times for 10 meters (overground) or 30 seconds each (treadmill conditions), totaling 36 trials per. Noraxon force sensitive resistors and inertial motion units (IMUs) were equipped on bilateral foot, shank, thighs, and the pelvis, while the electromyography (EMGs) were attached to the medial gastrocnemius (MG) and bicep femoris (BF) on the dominant leg. Meta Quest 2 was utilized for the VR conditions. RESULTS: Participants exhibited greater stride length differences between the treadmill conditions compared to overground walking (p = .027). MG elicited greater muscle activity (p = .004) with greater stride length variability between the treadmill conditions (p = .006). At fixed speed, both MG and BF elicited increase variability in speed (p = .016). CONCLUSION: Future research should include clinical populations and analysis of the non-dominate leg, where omnidirectional treadmill can be supplemental with conventional treadmill training. This advancement can provide new opportunities for leveraging VR for novel rehabilitative paradigms.
Recommended Citation
Pham, Wendy T.; Retzinger, Gwendolyn; Bigham, Blake; Hori, Kayla E.; and Hinkel-Lipsker, Jacob
(2025)
"Walking on an Omnidirectional Treadmill: Implications for Gait Training,"
International Journal of Exercise Science: Conference Proceedings: Vol. 14:
Iss.
5, Article 60.
Available at:
https://digitalcommons.wku.edu/ijesab/vol14/iss5/60
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