Lower propulsive joint powers, particularly at the ankle, are often observed in older compared to young adults. Interventions to increase joint powers often require labs with motion capture and force treadmill technology. Translating these interventions out of the lab requires identifying portable measures that track (i.e., strongly correlate with) changes in joint powers. The purpose of this study was to determine if kinematics collected using inertial measurement units (IMUs) correlate with propulsive joint powers calculated using inverse dynamics. We collected data simultaneously with motion capture, force plates, and IMU sensors as young and older adults walked at varying speeds overground in a laboratory. Hip, knee, and ankle joint powers were calculated using inverse dynamics and positive peaks in the second half of stance were identified as the propulsive powers of interest. Raw IMU gyroscope data were oriented to a functional medial–lateral axis and peaks in the second half of stance were identified for segment (thigh, shank, foot) and joint (hip, knee, ankle) angular velocities. Pearson correlation coefficients were calculated between peak joint powers and peak angular velocities. We identified significant (all p < 0.001) correlations between hip joint power and hip and thigh angular velocities (r = 0.80–0.83) and between ankle joint power and ankle, shank, and foot angular velocities (r = 0.77–0.89). Correlation strength was similar between young and older adults and between segment and joint angular velocities. These results suggest that changes in joint powers longitudinally or over the course of an intervention could be tracked using a minimal set of wearable sensors.

与年轻人相比，老年人通常观察到较低的推进关节力量，特别是在脚踝处。为了增加关节力量而进行的干预通常需要具有运动捕捉和力量跑步机技术的实验室。将这些干预措施转移到实验室之外，需要确定可跟踪联合力量变化（即与之紧密相关）的便携式措施。这项研究的目的是确定使用惯性测量单位（IMU）收集的运动学是否与使用逆动力学计算的推进联合动力相关。当年轻人和老年人在实验室中以不同的速度在地面上行走时，我们通过运动捕捉，测力板和IMU传感器同时收集数据。臀部，膝盖，使用逆动力学计算踝关节的力量，将姿势的后半部分的正峰值确定为感兴趣的推进力。原始的IMU陀螺仪数据指向功能性的内外侧轴，并在姿势下半部分的峰值（大腿，小腿，足）和关节（臀部，膝盖，脚踝）的角速度处确定了峰值。计算了峰值联合功率和峰值角速度之间的皮尔逊相关系数。我们发现髋关节力量与髋部和大腿角速度之间（r = 0.80–0.83）以及踝关节力量与踝部，小腿和足部角速度之间存在显着（所有p <0.001）相关性（r = 0.77–0.89）。年轻人和老年人之间以及节段和关节角速度之间的相关强度相似。