ANALYSIS OF PLANTAR SURFACE DATA DURING THE LOADED PHASE OF GAIT ON INCLINED SURFACES

High accuracy three-dimensional (3D) capture of the plantar surface during gait using video-based 3D image processing technique has recently been developed as part of a project to understand plantar geometry and its relationship to plantar function and shoedesign specifications. Literature review determines that the manner the plantar surface and cross-sectional changes during gait on inclined surfaces have not previously been reported. This paper outlines a 3D surface analysis method developed to examine the plantar surface geometry changes while walking on inclined walking surfaces. The plantar surface capture system has a 3D measurement accuracy of ±0.4 mm. The ICC test (using the subjects’ foot) and four operators results show that the ICC (3, 4) was 0.87 with a lower bound = 0.75 and an upper bound = 0.92