A dynamic programming approach for automatic stride detection and segmentation in acoustic emission from the knee

We study the acquisition and analysis of sounds generated by the knee during walking with particular focus on the effects due to osteoarthritis. Reliable contact instant estimation is essential for stride synchronous analysis. We present a dynamic programming based algorithm for automatic estimation of both the initial contact instants (ICIs) and last contact instants (LCIs) of the foot to the floor. The technique is designed for acoustic signals sensed at the patella of the knee. It uses the phase-slope function to generate a set of candidates and then finds the most likely ones by minimizing a cost function that we define. ICIs are identified with an RMS error of 13.0% for healthy and 14.6% for osteoarthritic knees and LCIs with an RMS error of 16.0% and 17.0% respectively