Biomechanics Lab – A Centre for
Interdisciplinary Studies
Dr. Shan is the founder of a state-of-the-art Biomechanics Lab at the University of Lethbridge. The lab is equipped with a high-speed 3D motion capture system (the same technology used to film Star Wars movies), wireless EMG, force platforms & bicycle pedal force sensors along with other equipments personally developed by Dr. Shan (please see details below). Since its establishment in 2000, 66 researchers have worked/ are working in the lab, including collaborative professors, international visiting scholars, PhD, Master’s and undergraduate students. The lab has been hosting a wide range of high-impact, interdisciplinary research projects, which cross nine distinct fields: Medicine, Sports, Engineering, Health, Music, Art, Ergonomics, Education and Psychology. The Biomechanics Lab specializes in drawing upon each field’s unique knowledge bases to formulate integrated strategies against difficult problems that cannot be successfully tackled by any field alone; novel linkages among fields have been made by capitalizing on Dr. Shan’s expertise in biomechanics as a nexus for researchers’ discussions.
Sample Research Projects
Study on
Overuse Syndrome in the Music Industry
In collaboration with
Prof. Visentin (Faculty of Fine Arts),
the Biomechanics Lab hosts the world’s first group to employ a quantitative approach to the widespread problem of Overuse Syndrome
(OS). Novel methods developed by professors Shan and Visentin for OS
characterization and prevention are widely cited (ISI Web of
KnowledgeSM)
and have proven to be very effective. Frameworks and definitions
established in this project have been adopted by other, international research
groups (Italy, USA, Australia etc). In
recognition of its innovation, the project was featured on the Discovery Channel/Canada and
A-Channel/Alberta.
Figure: Images from TV report of Discovery Channel/Canada.
Bi-directional
Pedaling Bicycle
The project aims to develop an innovative bicycle that uses both forward and backward pedaling to generate forward movement. Based on Dr. Shan’s design (patent registered), the bike seeks to improve performance and increase energy efficiencies of bicycling. The figure below pictures the first prototype, which was constructed in collaboration with the South Alberta Institute of Technology (SAIT).
Anthropometrical
Study
As part of his PhD thesis, Dr. Shan developed a quick method to obtain anthropometrical data from different gender and racial groups through body mass and body height measurements. His method consisted of a) an inexpensive device for scanning the body surface, b) reconstructing the body surface from the scans and c) a module for calculating segmental mass, radii of gyration and moments of inertia. Regression equations were established which provided a quick way to obtain all anthropometrical data for different gender and racial groups. This study is published in Applied Ergonomics and is widely cited (ISI Web of KnowledgeSM).
Figure: Program for estimating anthropometrical data
(left: Inputs, right: Outputs)
Golf Club Characterization and Design
The project examines golf club design, evaluation and optimization in collaboration with the Department of Sport Engineering at the University of Magdeburg/Germany. This project won two international awards: 1) 1st Prize of Sports Engineering Student Project Competition organized by the International Sports Engineering Association (ISEA) in 2008 and 2) Young Investigator Award at Asia-Pacific Congress on Sports Technology in 2007.
Figure: Golf club optimization via 3D motion capture, biomechanical modeling and simulation.
Novel Use of 3-D Motion Capture in the
Visual Arts
Collaborating with Fine
Arts professors, Dr. Shan recently explored an unusual application of motion
capture technology to the fields of Art and Communication. In addition to two
peer-reviewed publications, two of Dr. Shan’s art works were selected by
the Jurors of the 9th International Digital Print Open
Competition/Exhibition at the New York Hall of Science (Exhibition: Oct.
6, 2007 – Jan. 27, 2008) in New York City. The same
artworks were also selected for another exhibition from Feb. 13 to Mar. 10, 2008 in the Babbio Center Atrium
and DeBaun Auditorium at Stevens
Institute of Technology (Founded in 1870 in Hoboken, New Jersey/USA).
Figure: The signature of Indian Dance – elements of architectural symmetry, balance, regularity and consistency of movement (left) and the signature of a powerful Tae Kwon Do side kick (right).
Dancing Study
In collaboration with the Institute of Movement Science at University
of Münster/Germany, this project was part of a PhD thesis, which initiated a quantitative comparison between Indian Dance
and Ballet. The final dissertation was
selected as the Top 3 Ph.D. dissertations 2005-2006 at dvs-Tagung in Hamburg
2007 (German Sport Association Conference, Hamburg, 2007).
Aging Study
This study examines cognitive and sensorimotor coordination, age-related motor and dynamic balancing abilities, fall prediction and prevention, and the effects of rehabilitative and/or preventative exercise in seniors. These studies are enabled by a proprietary equipment (pictured below) invented by Dr. Shan for studying balance during random perturbations.
Figure: Perturbation platform for the testing of sensori-motor degradation & re-weighting related to age
Soccer Study
Using 3D motion capture and full body biomechanical modeling, Dr. Shan and his research team are the first to quantitatively establish the key characteristics of a maximal instep kick, which can be summarized as the formation of a tension arc and the fast release of that tension arc (Figured below). The results of this project were published in several peer-reviewed sport science journals.
