Faculty Mentor(s)

Dr. Brian Rider, Kinesiology; Dr. Kirk Brumels, Kinesiology; Dr. Adam Coughlin, Saginaw Valley State University; Dr. Alex Montoya, Alma College

Document Type

Poster

Event Date

4-12-2024

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to determine the step counting accuracy of four commercial smart watches. Methods: Twelve adults (mean ± SD, 24.8 ± 8.4 years) completed this two-trial study. Trial 1(T1) occurred indoors and Trial 2 (T2) took place outdoors. During T1 participants were outfitted with four smart watches, two on each arm (Apple Watch Ultra, Coros Vertix 2, Garmin Fenix 6, Polar Grit X) and completed both a treadmill and activities of daily living (ADL) protocol. During T2 they completed a 3.2 kilometer trail run. During TW participants wore a chest harness outfitted with a GoPro camera pointed down at their feet. The GoPro continuously recorded video of all steps taken throughout the run. Steps during both study trials were counted by investigators using a hand tally device, which served as the criterion measure. Both trials were repeated to assess device reliability. We used a Repeated Measures ANOVA and Paired T-Tests for between device comparisons with a post hoc Bonferroni correction. Results: There was an overall statically significant difference in total steps between devices and the criterion measure (p<0.01). There were statistical differences between devices across all trials. Conclusion: Our findings suggest these devices are most accurate during trail running but struggle to capture non-running activities.

Comments

This material is based upon work supported by the Coach Mark Northuis Kinesiology Summer Research Fund.

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