Recent Advances in Wearable Sensors with Application in Rehabilitation Motion Analysis

The increase in world elderly population has significantly underlined the need for continuous health care measurement, specifically in rehabilitation monitoring. The new technologies has enabled people to have in home healthcare services, meanwhile, motion analysis methods are widely used for human activity monitoring as a remote healthcare service. Wearable sensors have indicated promising results both in convenience and technical performance. These sensors are extensively used in human motion analysis and advancement of wireless communications has intensively contributed to this field. Exploiting wireless technology and wearable sensors contributes to more effective help in emergency cases and has significantly decreased the hospitalization time. This paper reviews the most recent advances in wearable sensors used in motion analysis, specifically in the field of rehabilitation. Firstly, common wearable sensor technologies are introduced and then wearable sensors deploying Carbon Nano Tubes (CNT) are specifically reviewed. The next section is dedicated to sensor fusion in which possibility and performance of integration of new technologies are reviewed. This technique has been widely exploited to bring forth certainty in clinical results. Lastly, the challenges and future possibilities for advancement in motion analysis sensors is discussed.