Age-Related Walkability Assessment: A Preliminary Study Based on the EMG

Populations around the world are rapidly ageing as the population aged 65 and over is growing faster than all other age groups. Most of the daily life actions of active elderly are related to walking activities, thus guaranteeing walking environments that are elderly-friendly are nowadays a priority to ensure healthy aging. Measuring and recognizing the affective state of people during walking activities contribute to a better comprehension of their perception of the environment, and a better definition of walkable urban area. With the aim of paving the way for assessing walkability, introducing quantitative evaluation tools, this work proposes to compare physiological responses of subjects of different ages, in different walking conditions. To this end a proper experiment has been designed in a controlled environment, considering both young adults and elderly, and adopting wearable devices. In this paper the analysis of the leg muscles activity acquired with Electromyography is presented. The results of this preliminary study highlight age-related differences in subjects facing both forced speed walks and collision avoidance tasks.