Biomechanical P ... Slalom Water Skiing R1.pdf - Atrium - University ...

2 MethodsThe natural environment surrounding water skiing provided many challenges whendesigning an instrumentation system and methodology. The uncontrollable factors suchas weather, boat operation and fatigue were minimized with a highly structuredexperimental procedure. Instrumentation design choices were made considering that anyinstrument that was to be mounted to the ski or skier needed to be waterproofed, the dataneeded to be manipulated for analysis after each test day, the data needed to be collectedby a host computer and instruments needed to be able to withstand a harsh environment.Wind was monitored throughout each test day using a temporary data collection station.The station was located on a dock at a location that was exposed to the relatively samewind as where the subjects were skiing. Data was collected from an anemometer (#40C,NRG Systems Inc, Hinesburg, Vermont), located approximately six feet above thesurface of the dock, by a data logger (SynphoniePLUS, NRG Systems Inc, Hinesburg,Vermont). Wind effects were negligible because subjects were required to ski one runinto the wind and the other with the wind and the results from each test run wereaveraged.Determining what type of IMU to apply to a specific application is very important andthere are several commercial options available on the market. Each type has its own set ofpros and cons that need to be incorporated into the decision process. For this study themost desirable solution was a self contained product that required a minimal amount ofsignal conditioning after the signal was received from the unit.30