LOCOMOTION

PHYSIOLOGY AND BIOMECHANICS OF LOCOMOTION

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RESEARCH

 The field of research of our lab is the physiology and the biomechanics of terrestrial locomotion and the analysis of movements in sports (particularly in gymnastics and in track and field). Intrinsic factors (morphology, development, pathologies...) or extrinsic factors (slope or softness of the terrain, carrying a load, obstacles, gravity ...) may modify the pattern of locomotion (stride length, step frequency, muscular activity, ...). The aim of our research is to understand how the human system adapts to these particular situations.

Study of terrestrial locomotion

At the first sight, numerous ways of terrestrial locomation exist: some animals move on two legs, others on four. They walk, run, trot, gallop, leap, practice pacing, etc. Although the great diversity of described patterns, theses ways of terrestrial locomation are all based ont two main mechanisms :

- The pendular machanism of walking, 

- The mechanism of rebond existing in run, trot and leap.

Analysis of movement in gymnastics

This work aims at studying the control of the movement during a gesture in gymnastics, in athletism (sprint start, obstacles) in fencing, in a race after a disturbance.... The impact of training on motor control is also studied.

The current projects are : 

  • The effect of gravity on the muscular control of landing from a jump,
  • Biomechanical and physiological aspects of jumping over an obstacle while running in human,
  • The effect of a perturbation when running ant its motor control.

Collaborations linked to these projects are :

Pedagogic collaborators 

  • Stéphane BEAUME
  • Thierry DELEUZE
  • Jean-Philippe DEMARET
  • Cécile DETERVILLE
  • Frédéric LEROY 

Scientific National Collaborations 

  • Peter AERTS (Laboratory for Functional Morphology, Department of Biology, Universiteit of Antwerp)
  • Guillaume BASTIEN (Arsalis - Commission d'encadrement de physiologie et de biomécanique de la locomotion - UCL - FSM)
  • Dirck DECLERCQ (Department of Movement and Sport Sciences, Universiteit of Gent)
  • Christine DETREMBLEUR (Commission d'encadrement de réadaptation et de médecine physique - READ)
  • Massimo PENTA, Thierry GOSSEYE (Arsalis)

Scientific International Collaborations 

  • (Dipartimento di Fisiopatologia e dei Trapianti, Sezione di Fisiologia Umana, Universita Degli Studi di Milano – Italy)
  • Pietro DI PRAMPERO (Istituto di Fisiologia Umana, Universita di Udine, Italy)
  • Trevor DREW (Centre de Recherche en Sciences Neurologiques - Université de Montréal - Canada)
  • Walter HERZOG (Human Performance Laboratory, University of Calgary, Canada)
  • Daniel THEISEN, Sport Medecine Research Laboratory, Centre de Recherche Public de la Santé, GD de Luxembourg

The laboratory holds the following equipments :

  • A force platform made of 16 plates (size of each plate: 1m x 1m) measures the ground reaction forces in the three directions of the space. It has a resolution of 3 N and a full scale of 50.000 N.
  • A force platform made of 10 plates (total length: 6 m) measures the vertical and forward components of the ground reaction force during several continuous walking or running steps.
  • A piezo-electric force platform (KISTLER®) measures the ground reaction forces in the three directions of the space.
  • A motion analysis system with two color digital cameras (Basler®-eLynk®) records the movements of the body segments at a maximal frequency of 210 frames/s.
  • A motion analysis system with one B-W digital camera (Basler®- 500) records the movements of the body segments at a maximal frequency of 100 frames/s.
  • A WiFi electromyographic system (FreeEMG, BTS®) records the electrical activity of up to 16 muscles.
  • An electromyographic system (Noraxon - Myosystem) records the electrical activity of up to 8 muscles.

TEAM

Principal investigator

  • , PhD (Head of the research group)
  • , PhD
  • , PhD
  • , PhD
  • , PhD

PhD students 

Technical and administrative staff

 

  • , accountant
  • , computer scientist
  • , technician
  • , secretary Faculty of Motor Sciences
  • , administrative assistant
  • , computer scientist
  • , industrial engineer
  • , electronics technician

Scientific collaborator

PUBLICATIONS 

Significant publications.

 

| 29/11/2012 |