Characteristics of recognizing the need to Step over an Obstacle during walking : By using an eye-camera System
Kazuhiko WATANABE and Keiji TAMURA
The characteristics of recognizing visual information during walking on a straight course were analyzed using an eye-camera system. The subject was a student who was informed of the purpose of the experiment and the experimental conditions. The following two conditions were examined without an obstacle and with an obstacle (a wooden board 21 cm height 64 cm wide 2 cm thick) set on the middle of the straight course measuring 26 m of distance. The subject was asked to walk at his own speed.
The following results were obtained ;
1 . There was clear difference in the results obtained from the eye-camera regarding "saccadic" eye movement when stepping over an obstacle was required during straight walking. There was not such clear saccadic eye-movement during walking along the straight course without an obstacle. Saccadic eye movement may be used to determine the strategy for stepping over the obstacle during walking.
2 . The area and the length of eye-movements while walking were compared between conditions with and without an obstacle. During walking with an obstacle on the course, a larger area and greater length of eye-movement was recorded. This parameter will be useful for comparisons between young adults and the elderly.
3 . There were some difficulties in using the eye-camera system for analyzing walking under actual conditions, but this system could still be applied to studies even for studies involving the elderly.
(Rep. Res. Cent. Phys. Ed. 25 : 120-128, 1997)
これまで、高齢者の歩行運動に着目し、調査研を進めてきた。同様の幾つかの研究報告もなさ
広島大学教育学部体育教育学講座Laboratory of Physiology and Sports Biomechanics，Faculty of Education，Hiroshima University
