Validation of an Ear-Worn Wearable Gait Analysis Device

Wearable devices capable of measuring gait parameters may provide a means to more economical gait analysis compared to conventional equipment comprising of a motion capture system and a forced treadmill. Beflex Coach (Beflex, Republic of Korea) is one such device but worn on the ear as Bluetooth earphones, unlike other wearables worn on the wrist, feet, or torso. In this study, the validity of the device was examined against a motion capture system and a forced treadmill for walking and running parameters. Five walking parameters (cadence, single support time, double support time, vertical oscillation (VO), and instantaneous vertical loading rate (IVLR)) and six running parameters (cadence, stance time, flight time, peak force, VO, and IVLR) were studied. Twenty young adults participated in walking or running on a forced treadmill at different speeds (walking: 0.8, 1.25, and 1.7 m/s for walking; running: 2, 2.5, and 3 m/s) while the two systems operated simultaneously. As a result, all parameters showed excellent associations (ICC > 0.75) and good agreements in Bland–Altman plots. The results of the study support the potential use of the ear-worn device as an inexpensive gait analysis equipment.