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Posture Sway and the Transition Rate for a Fall

R. K. Koleva·A. Widom·D. Garelick·Meredith Harris
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Abstract

Postural body sway displacements for quiet standing subjects (measured with a new ultrasonic device) are reported. Two of the well known strategies for balancing, namely ankle and hip movements were probed. The data is modeled using a Fokker-Plank-Langevin stochastic theory. Both analytic and computer simulation techniques are employed. The Kramers transition rate for a fall is expressed as a function of experimental parameters. The root mean square velocity is especially important in determining the fall probability.

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R. K. Koleva, A. Widom, D. Garelick, Meredith Harris. 1999-07-20. Posture Sway and the Transition Rate for a Fall. https://arxiv.org/abs/cond-mat/9907311

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