Defining functional groups based on running kinematics using Self-Organizing Maps and Support Vector Machines

A functional group is a collection of individuals who react in a similar way to a specific intervention/product such as a sport shoe. Matching footwear features to a functional group can possibly enhance footwear-related comfort, improve running performance, and decrease the risk of movement-related injuries. To match footwear features to a functional group, one has to first define the different groups using their distinctive movement patterns. Therefore, the main objective of this study was to propose and apply a methodological approach to define functional groups with different movement patterns using Self-Organizing Maps and Support Vector Machines. Further study objectives were to identify differences in age, gender and footwear-related comfort preferences between the functional groups. Kinematic data and subjective comfort preferences of 88 subjects (16-76 years; 45 m/43 f) were analysed. Eight functional groups with distinctive movement patterns were defined. The findings revealed that most of the groups differed in age or gender. Certain functional groups differed in their comfort preferences and, therefore, had group-specific footwear requirements to enhance footwear-related comfort. Some of the groups, which had group-specific footwear requirements, did not show any differences in age or gender. This is important because when defining functional groups simply using common grouping criteria like age or gender, certain functional groups with group-specific movement patterns and footwear requirements might not be detected. This emphasises the power of the proposed pattern recognition approach to automatically define groups by their distinctive movement patterns in order to be able to address their group-specific product requirements.