Moving through the world requires people to continually adapt to changing environments, physical demands, and individual capabilities. My research uses biomechanics and complementary approaches to understand these adaptations and identify factors that can help people move freely and independently. Across this work, precise measurement and rigorous study design provide the foundation for understanding movement under conditions that better reflect the demands people encounter outside the laboratory.
Much of what we know about gait biomechanics comes from walking on level, predictable surfaces in controlled laboratory environments. Our research brings selected challenges encountered in everyday and outdoor environments into the laboratory, where gait adaptations can be measured comprehensively and precisely.
Current work examines walking on uphill and downhill slopes, cross slopes, curbs and step transitions, loose terrain, and fixed uneven surfaces. By systematically controlling these challenges, we can determine how people adapt their movement while retaining the measurement precision needed to understand the underlying biomechanics.
What people wear, carry, or use can alter both the demands of movement and their ability to respond to those demands. Our research examines how these factors affect movement and how they might ultimately be used or modified to support movement independence.
Current work includes investigating the effects of footwear and load carriage on gait and evaluating and developing ankle assistive devices. These studies provide opportunities to understand how external factors can challenge, support, or augment movement in everyday, recreational, and occupational activities.
Laboratory measurement provides the precision and control needed to understand movement biomechanics, but it cannot fully represent how people move in their everyday environments. Our research is developing approaches to extend movement measurement beyond the laboratory while maintaining a clear understanding of what can (and cannot) be measured with sufficient precision.
Current work focuses on developing and evaluating measurement protocols and analysis approaches for studying movement across real-world terrain and environments. By linking these measurements with controlled laboratory assessment, we aim to determine which aspects of movement can be measured meaningfully outside the lab and how those measurements relate to what we observe under controlled conditions.
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