SM2501 Biomechanics of Human Movement 7.5 credits

Biomechanics is a large and growing field that can broadly be defined as applying the use of mechanics to study living systems. Studying biomechanics of human movement includes the dynamics involved in locomotion, the relationship between movement and forces - both internal and external, simulation and prediction of movement, etc. This course will focus on movement of the human body and accompanying forces, fundamentals of motion production, analysis, and modeling. The course focuses first on the anatomy and physiology of the human musculoskeletal system, with examples from typical development and from pathology of the neuromusculoskeletal system. From this foundation, the course will focus on methods to analyze biomechanical problems, including kinematics and kinetics of movement, with experiments, computations and musculoskeletal simulation. Relevant topics requiring such analyses will be discussed, in particular walking and bipedal movements. Emphasis is placed not only on computation, but also on interpretation and critical evaluation of results. Teaching consists of lectures, experiments and data collection on human subjects, group discussions, computer laboratories and guest lecturers. The examination consists of 4 group projects that are carried out during the teaching period.