Notes on the margin of stability

2024/03/01 by Carolin Curtze, T J W Buurke, Christopher McCrum · 1 voice
Health Professions · Medicine · #Balance, Gait, and Falls Prevention #Cerebral Palsy and Movement Disorders #Injury Epidemiology and Prevention

paper · doi:10.1016/j.jbiomech.2024.112045

openalex publication_date 2024/03/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/01

Abstract

The concept of the 'extrapolated center of mass (XcoM)', introduced by Hof et al., (2005, J. Biomechanics 38 (1), p. 1-8), extends the classical inverted pendulum model to dynamic situations. The vector quantity XcoM combines the center of mass position plus its velocity divided by the pendulum eigenfrequency. In this concept, the margin of stability (MoS), i.e., the minimum signed distance from the XcoM to the boundaries of the base of support was proposed as a measure of dynamic stability. Here we describe the conceptual evolution of the XcoM, discuss key considerations in the estimation of the XcoM and MoS, and provide a critical perspective on the interpretation of the MoS as a measure of instantaneous mechanical stability.

Citations

• Comparison of ground reaction force and marker-based methods to estimate mediolateral center of mass displacement and margins of stability during walking

Discussions

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