A computer game based motivation system for human physiology studies.

Abstract

In human physiology studies subjects are often asked to perform certain exercises, eg.knee extension or flexion,hip extension or flexion etc . Those experiments are split into several repetitions which might last just for few seconds. Therefore subjects need to motivated fast and reliably to perform a maximum extension or flexion. The standard procedure in those cases is however verbal motivation by the investigator (in fact, the investigator is just yelling at the subject "Push harder, harder..") . It has been shown that the performance of the subject is strongly correlated to verbal motivation by the investigator [3], [4], [5], [6], [7], [8]. Therefore, the experiments are not reproducible, and mainly biased by the invesigator. To overcome the problems associated with the standard verbal motivation procedure a game based motivation system has been designed for human physiology studies. In the physiology laboratory at the Institute of Aerospace Medicine,DLR, the Biodex System3 Isokinetic Dynamometer [1] is used for force and power diagnostics in different human muscle groups [2]. The different force and power diagnostic experiments conducted requires the human subjects to exert maximum force voluntarily. The experiment heavily relies on the subject’s voluntary effort as well as verbal motivation by investigator. Computer games are known to engage people in game play for long durations and make it an enjoyable experience.It is possible to create new and interesting tasks using gaming or virtual reality based systems. So computer games have been combined with exercising or rehabilitation equipments to provide motivation and customized training [9], [10], [11], [12], [13], [14], [15]. Taking a cue from this , a computer game based motivation system was developed for the isokinetic dynamometer. A tailor made game for the system can motivate the subject and also standardize the process. It will reduce the dependency on the investigator for encouragement as well as guide the subjects through the experiment. The game based system is expected to replace verbal encouragement by Providing visual feedback to improve peak torque Providing continuous motivation Helping the user perform consistently over repetitions