Method and system for posture awareness training

• US 20070083384A1
• Filed: 09/28/2005
• Published: 04/12/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 09/28/2005
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Right-Fit Education LLC
• Original Assignee: Right-Fit Education LLC
• Inventors: Bresingham, Joseph, Gray, Suzanne, Geslak, David
• Application Number:
  US11/237,266
• Publication Number:
  US 20070083384A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/2
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/00 Administration; Management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/10 Services
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 19/00 Teaching not covered by other main groups of this subclass teaching or practice apparatus for gun-aiming or gun-laying F41G3/26
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 10/60 for patient-specific data, e.g. for electronic patient records
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/30 relating to physical therapies or activities, e.g. physiotherapy, acupressure or exercising
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 70/20 relating to practices or guidelines

Abstract

A system is provided for capturing a plurality of digital images of a given person for providing posture analysis and posture awareness training. The images may be displayed in a screen along with interactive vertical lines (vertical axis) and horizontal lines (top, bottom, and middle). An orthogonal gridline may be scaled by converting a physical mesh size provided by a user to a pixel mesh size and then overlaid on the image to assist in posture analysis. The system retains a historical record for the given person so that posture and training effectiveness may be tracked over time. Generally, anterior, posterior, and/or lateral images of the given person are used to analyze posture. In a further embodiment, a footpad may be used to provide indications for placement of the vertical and/or horizontal lines.

Claims

1. A method of operating at least one programmable electronic data processing machine comprising:

receiving a digital image file comprising an image representative of a given person standing in a first position;

associating the digital image with a data record for the given person, wherein the data record is one of a plurality of data records and stored in a data storage accessible to the data processing machine;

displaying the image at a user output;

displaying an interactive vertical line overlaid on the image for providing a vertical axis as a posture reference;

displaying at least two reference indicators overlaid on the image for determining a scale factor; and

requesting a posture assessment of the given person based on the digital image.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

displaying an orthogonal grid overlaid on the image for further facilitating the posture assessment.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising receiving an a user input indicating a grid mesh size.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising determining the scale factor by comparing a pixel-type difference between the two reference indicators with a physical distance between two physical reference indicators associated with points on the given person'"'"'s body.

5. The method of claim 4,

wherein the two reference indicators include a first horizontal line and a second horizontal line, wherein the first horizontal line may be associated with a top of a head of the given person and the second horizontal line may be associated with a bottom of a foot of the given person and

wherein the physical distance is a height of the given person, and wherein the height of the given person is stored in a data record for the given person.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of data records include a historical set of data records associated with the given person, wherein (i) changes in posture and (ii) treatment effectiveness may be tracked over time.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the historical set of data records associated with the given person include at least one image associated with the given person for each of a plurality of historical points, and wherein each image is further associated with a data record indicative of a height, a weight, and an age of the given person at a given historical point.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the image file is further representative of the given person standing on a footpad configured to facilitate positioning the vertical line.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the (vi) instructions for displaying the orthogonal grid comprise:

(vi.a) instructions for receiving a physical grid mesh size from a user, the physical grid mesh size being a physical distance relative relating to the given person'"'"'s body;

(vi.b) instructions for converting the physical grid mesh size to a pixel-type grid mesh size using the scale factor;

(vi.c) instructions for displaying the orthogonal grid, wherein each parallel gridline is separated by the pixel-type grid mesh size.

9. A system for posture analysis comprising computer code stored in data storage and executable by a processor, the code comprising:

(i) instructions for retrievably storing records relating to a plurality of persons;

(ii) instructions for associating a digital image file with a first record associated with a first person;

(iii) instructions for displaying the digital image file at a user output;

(iv) instructions for displaying an interactive vertical line overlaid on the image at the user output for providing a vertical axis as a posture reference; and

(v) instructions for displaying at least two interactive reference indicators overlaid on the image at the user output for determining a scale factor.

10. The system of claim 9, the code further comprising:

(vi) instructions for displaying an orthogonal grid overlaid on the image at the user output for further facilitating postural assessment.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the scale factor is a key for relating a physical distance between two parts of given person'"'"'s body to a pixel-type distance between two points in the image file, the two points in the image file corresponding to the two parts of the given person'"'"'s body.

13. The system of claim 9, wherein the (i) instructions for retrievably storing records relating to the plurality of persons further includes instructions for storing historical records relating to each person, wherein each historical record comprises:

a date indicator indicating the historical reference point;

at least one digital image for posture assessment showing a posture of the person at the historical reference point;

a height of the person at the historical reference point;

a weight of the person at the historical reference point; and

an age of the person at the historical reference point.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein each historical record further comprises:

a postural assessment for the person; and

an individualized posture awareness training program.

15. The system of claim 9, wherein the wherein the two interactive reference indicators include a first horizontal line and a second horizontal line, wherein the first horizontal line may be associated with a top of a head of the given person and the second horizontal line may be associated with a bottom of a foot of the given person.

16. The system of claim 9, wherein a user may adjust a location of each horizontal line.

17. The system of claim 9, wherein the (iv) instructions for displaying the interactive vertical line overlaid on the image comprises:

(iv.a) instructions for discovering a vertical axis location indicator in the digital image;

(iv.b) instructions for displaying the vertical line such that the vertical line passes through the vertical axis location indicator.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the vertical axis location indicator is a marker shown on a footpad.

19. A system for posture assessment comprising:

a footpad for positioning a person in a first position, the footpad including a marker as a vertical axis location indicator;

a digital camera for creating a first digital image of the person standing on the footpad in the first position;

data storage for storing a plurality of records associated a plurality of persons;

a processor for executing program code and for accessing data storage;

a user output; and

a program code executable by the processor for;

associating the first digital image with a record associated with the first person;

displaying the first digital image at the user output;

generating a vertical axis overlaid on the digital image, wherein the vertical axis passes through the vertical axis location indicator; and

calculating a grid scale factor for converting a physical distance to a pixel-type distance.

20. The system of claim 19, wherein the first position is a lateral position, and the marker provides an indication of a location anterior to the lateral malleolus.