A Real-time Movement Sonification Application For Bodyweight Squat Training

The bodyweight squat is an accessible, versatile and effective movement, fundamental to common activities of daily living such as:standing, sitting, and lifting. Yet, many individuals experience difficulty understanding how to perform this movement correctly. Movement sonification is a reliable method for providing guidance during physical activity. We developed an auditory-only exercise application that provides guidance for squat training through the
use of real-time movement sonification feedback. We provided feedback for four movement parameters of the squat: foot placement, knee flexion angle, knee alignment, and weight shifting. Two evaluations were conducted. In the first evaluation, four participants provided feedback on five sonic designs and mappings. We found that participants preferred contextual sonic designs opposed to continuous designs. In the second evaluation, four participants
assessed the usability of the application. The application was found to have a mean System Usability Score of 78.75. Our work outlines the design of a real-time concurrent sonification scheme that provides logical, sequential feedback information for multiple movement parameters. We anticipate that this paradigm will assist in further establishing the potential of movement sonification to
augment squat training when no visual input is present.