Sporting glory could all come down to how you accessorise

Improving your athletic performance could all come down to how you accessorise your ears -<em>News Release</em>

Imperial College London News Release

For immediate release
13 September 2007

Improving your athletic performance could all come down to what you put in your ears, claims Professor Guang-Zhong Yang    today (13 September) at the BA Festival of Science.

Professor Yang, a pioneer in the field of body sensor networks at Imperial College London, will discuss the medical and sporting applications of an unobtrusive body sensor, the size of a hearing aid, which could monitor and ultimately improve the performance of an athlete while training. His presentation forms part of the ‘Achieving Gold with Engineering’ event organised by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council.

The sensor is inspired by the semicircular canals of the inner ear which are responsible for controlling motion and balance. It fits snugly behind the ear and gathers large amounts of data about posture, step frequency, stride length, acceleration and response to shock waves travelling through the body.

A computer, the size of a pin head, but with enough power to process information, sits inside the earpiece and transmits data to a laptop or handheld display trackside. This allows for real-time monitoring of athletic performance by coaching staff.

“The process of having biomechanical data available on the spot during training sessions makes the whole process of improving sporting technique much quicker and easier,” says Professor Yang.

Current body sensors available are cumbersome, hinder athletic performance and cannot deliver real-time monitoring, he adds.

“Our sensor technology is comfortable to wear and does not affect the aerodynamics of an athlete’s performance. This makes the data more accurate and much more valuable,” he explains.

Professor Yang believes that the sensor also has important potential applications for preventative medicine.

Previous research suggests that the walking pattern of a person changes if their medical condition worsens. By analysing changes, via the sensor, medics can potentially detect if a person’s health is deteriorating. This information is particularly useful for monitoring people living with Parkinson’s disease.

Professor Yang says that the sensors could also be useful for monitoring the elderly and patients with chronic illnesses. He comments:

“The interface between human and computer via the sensors allows for a constant stream of information to be analysed by doctors. This technology could help monitor those with degenerative arthritis or those who have undergone orthopaedic surgery.”

Professor Guang-Zhong Yang, from Imperial’s Institute of Biomedical Engineering will give his presentation on Thursday 13th September from 11.30 noon to 1.30pm (in Physics P/T005a, University of York). This will form part of the ‘Achieving Gold with Engineering’ event organised by Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council which will run from 11.30am to 1.30pm on this date.

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For further information please contact:

Colin Smith
Press Officer
Imperial College London
Email: cd.smith@imperial.ac.uk
Tel: +44 (0)207 594 6712
Out of hours duty press officer: +44 (0)7803 886 248

Notes to Editors:

1. About Imperial College London Rated as the world's ninth best university in the 2006 Times Higher Education Supplement University Rankings, Imperial College London is a science-based institution with a reputation for excellence in teaching and research that attracts 11,500 students and 6,000 staff of the highest international quality. Innovative research at the College explores the interface between science, medicine, engineering and management and delivers practical solutions that improve quality of life and the environment - underpinned by a dynamic enterprise culture.

With 66 Fellows of the Royal Society among our current academic staff and distinguished past members of the College including 14 Nobel Laureates and two Fields Medallists, Imperial's contribution to society has been immense.

Inventions and innovations include the discovery of penicillin, the development of holography and the foundations of fibre optics. This commitment to the application of our research for the benefit of all continues today with current focuses including interdisciplinary collaborations to tackle climate change and mathematical modelling to predict and control the spread of infectious diseases.

The College's 100 years of living science will be celebrated throughout 2007 with a range of events to mark the Centenary of the signing of Imperial's founding charter on 8 July 1907.

2. BA Festival of Science This year’s BA (British Association for the Advancement of Science) Festival of Science takes place in York from 9th-15th September and is hosted by the University of York, Science City York and the City of York Council. The event is one of the UK's biggest science festivals and attracts around 400 of the best scientists and science communicators from home and abroad who reveal the latest developments in research to a general audience. For more information, visit www.the-ba.net/festivalofscience.

3. Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council The ‘Sports Body Sensor Networks (Sports-BSN)’ will last 18 months and was funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council. The Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) is the UK's main agency for funding research in engineering and the physical sciences. Website address for more information on EPSRC: www.epsrc.ac.uk/