STTR Phase II:Inertial sensing of animal locomotion

This Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Phase II project proposes to further investigate use of a body-mounted, inertial sensor motion analysis system as a field-ready, objective evaluation technique to detect and evaluate locomotion disturbances in the horse. Research objectives involve incorporating the Hilbert-Huang transform into analysis algorithms, test another common gait, the canter, test unique gaits of popular breeds in the United States, expand application to detect and evaluate ataxia in horses and lameness in dogs, further investigate the ability of the system to differentiate impact from pushoff lameness, further investigate if specific, naturally-occurring lameness conditions can be differentiated by analysis, investigate the impact on analysis of adjusting for torso rotation, and investigate developing an additional data acquisition device for veterinarians to prescribe to clients as a monitoring tool. The broader impacts of this research are improving veterinary service provided to horses and dogs and generally enhancing animal health and well-being. Education of veterinary students will be improved by basing teaching on objective measurement rather than subjective opinion. Accurate detection and evaluation of lameness in horses and dogs and ataxia in horses early in the course of disease may save money and improve therapeutic outcomes if treatment is initiated when it may be most effective and provide the practicing veterinarian with more objective evidence on when and what diagnostic modalities have the greatest potential to achieve accurate and specific diagnosis. Successful commercial development of this technology will stimulate the economy, providing a value-added service previously unavailable.