A new method for the simultaneous measurement of the movement of inertia, the damping coefficient and the location of the centre of mass of a body segment in situ.

A new method which permits, in a single measurement, the determination of the moment of inertia, the angular damping coefficient of the joint and the location of the centre of mass of a body segment in situ is presented. The underlying principle is the theory of small, damped oscillations of a system about its equilibrium position. The fact that the oscillogram contains information about certain parameters of the oscillating system is used to find these parameters. The application of the method is simple and does not require highly sophisticated instrumentation. The results are very reproducable and immediately available.