2013 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

Development and evaluation of newly designed elderly simulated experience tool with active structure as simultaneous contraction of antagonistic muscle

Research Project

Project/Area Number	23660020
Research Category	Grant-in-Aid for Challenging Exploratory Research
Allocation Type	Multi-year Fund
Research Field	Fundamental nursing
Research Institution	Tohoku Fukushi University
Principal Investigator	SEKIKAWA SHINYA 東北福祉大学, 総合福祉学部, 准教授 (60326717)
Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha)	KATSUHIRA Junji 国際医療福祉大学, 保健医療学部, 講師 (00383117)
Project Period (FY)	2011 – 2013
Keywords	疑似体験用具 / 高齢者 / 動作分析
Research Abstract	Using of the elderly simulated experience tools are an effective means in understanding the inconvenience of activities by the elderly. However, most of the current tools are difficult to experience properly the elderly behavior because they are in the static structure consisting mainly of motion limited range of motion by a method using an orthotic device. The purposes of this study were to develop newly designed elderly simulated experience tool with active structure and execute kinetic and kinematic analyses of level walking which wearing the renewed tool. The aims of this study were to clarify the relationship between the body alignment of the elderlies and the developed tool, and to realize the wearing reproducibility and ease of the renewed tool.