Smartphone Global Positioning System–Based System to Assess Mobility in Health Research: Development, Accuracy, and Usability Study
BackgroundAs global positioning system (GPS) measurement is getting more precise and affordable, health researchers can now objectively measure mobility using GPS sensors. Available systems, however, often lack data security and means of adaptation and often rely on a permane...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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JMIR Publications
2023-03-01
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| Series: | JMIR Rehabilitation and Assistive Technologies |
| Online Access: | https://rehab.jmir.org/2023/1/e42258 |
| _version_ | 1797734442803920896 |
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| author | Robert P Spang Christine Haeger Sandra A Mümken Max Brauer Jan-Niklas Voigt-Antons Paul Gellert |
| author_facet | Robert P Spang Christine Haeger Sandra A Mümken Max Brauer Jan-Niklas Voigt-Antons Paul Gellert |
| author_sort | Robert P Spang |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description |
BackgroundAs global positioning system (GPS) measurement is getting more precise and affordable, health researchers can now objectively measure mobility using GPS sensors. Available systems, however, often lack data security and means of adaptation and often rely on a permanent internet connection.
ObjectiveTo overcome these issues, we aimed to develop and test an easy-to-use, easy-to-adapt, and offline working app using smartphone sensors (GPS and accelerometry) for the quantification of mobility parameters.
MethodsAn Android app, a server backend, and a specialized analysis pipeline have been developed (development substudy). Parameters of mobility by the study team members were extracted from the recorded GPS data using existing and newly developed algorithms. Test measurements were performed with participants to complete accuracy and reliability tests (accuracy substudy). Usability was examined by interviewing community-dwelling older adults after 1 week of device use, followed by an iterative app design process (usability substudy).
ResultsThe study protocol and the software toolchain worked reliably and accurately, even under suboptimal conditions, such as narrow streets and rural areas. The developed algorithms had high accuracy (97.4% correctness, F1-score=0.975) in distinguishing dwelling periods from moving intervals. The accuracy of the stop/trip classification is fundamental to second-order analyses such as the time out of home, as they rely on a precise discrimination between the 2 classes. The usability of the app and the study protocol was piloted with older adults, which showed low barriers and easy implementation into daily routines.
ConclusionsBased on accuracy analyses and users’ experience with the proposed system for GPS assessments, the developed algorithm showed great potential for app-based estimation of mobility in diverse health research contexts, including mobility patterns of community-dwelling older adults living in rural areas.
International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID)RR2-10.1186/s12877-021-02739-0 |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-12T12:44:00Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-ff6d8af07e7145efad7898951e0021e2 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2369-2529 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-12T12:44:00Z |
| publishDate | 2023-03-01 |
| publisher | JMIR Publications |
| record_format | Article |
| series | JMIR Rehabilitation and Assistive Technologies |
| spelling | doaj.art-ff6d8af07e7145efad7898951e0021e22023-08-28T23:34:48ZengJMIR PublicationsJMIR Rehabilitation and Assistive Technologies2369-25292023-03-0110e4225810.2196/42258Smartphone Global Positioning System–Based System to Assess Mobility in Health Research: Development, Accuracy, and Usability StudyRobert P Spanghttps://orcid.org/0000-0001-6580-9060Christine Haegerhttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-5631-838XSandra A Mümkenhttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-0603-0855Max Brauerhttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-2073-4445Jan-Niklas Voigt-Antonshttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-2786-9262Paul Gellerthttps://orcid.org/0000-0001-7492-7210 BackgroundAs global positioning system (GPS) measurement is getting more precise and affordable, health researchers can now objectively measure mobility using GPS sensors. Available systems, however, often lack data security and means of adaptation and often rely on a permanent internet connection. ObjectiveTo overcome these issues, we aimed to develop and test an easy-to-use, easy-to-adapt, and offline working app using smartphone sensors (GPS and accelerometry) for the quantification of mobility parameters. MethodsAn Android app, a server backend, and a specialized analysis pipeline have been developed (development substudy). Parameters of mobility by the study team members were extracted from the recorded GPS data using existing and newly developed algorithms. Test measurements were performed with participants to complete accuracy and reliability tests (accuracy substudy). Usability was examined by interviewing community-dwelling older adults after 1 week of device use, followed by an iterative app design process (usability substudy). ResultsThe study protocol and the software toolchain worked reliably and accurately, even under suboptimal conditions, such as narrow streets and rural areas. The developed algorithms had high accuracy (97.4% correctness, F1-score=0.975) in distinguishing dwelling periods from moving intervals. The accuracy of the stop/trip classification is fundamental to second-order analyses such as the time out of home, as they rely on a precise discrimination between the 2 classes. The usability of the app and the study protocol was piloted with older adults, which showed low barriers and easy implementation into daily routines. ConclusionsBased on accuracy analyses and users’ experience with the proposed system for GPS assessments, the developed algorithm showed great potential for app-based estimation of mobility in diverse health research contexts, including mobility patterns of community-dwelling older adults living in rural areas. International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID)RR2-10.1186/s12877-021-02739-0https://rehab.jmir.org/2023/1/e42258 |
| spellingShingle | Robert P Spang Christine Haeger Sandra A Mümken Max Brauer Jan-Niklas Voigt-Antons Paul Gellert Smartphone Global Positioning System–Based System to Assess Mobility in Health Research: Development, Accuracy, and Usability Study JMIR Rehabilitation and Assistive Technologies |
| title | Smartphone Global Positioning System–Based System to Assess Mobility in Health Research: Development, Accuracy, and Usability Study |
| title_full | Smartphone Global Positioning System–Based System to Assess Mobility in Health Research: Development, Accuracy, and Usability Study |
| title_fullStr | Smartphone Global Positioning System–Based System to Assess Mobility in Health Research: Development, Accuracy, and Usability Study |
| title_full_unstemmed | Smartphone Global Positioning System–Based System to Assess Mobility in Health Research: Development, Accuracy, and Usability Study |
| title_short | Smartphone Global Positioning System–Based System to Assess Mobility in Health Research: Development, Accuracy, and Usability Study |
| title_sort | smartphone global positioning system based system to assess mobility in health research development accuracy and usability study |
| url | https://rehab.jmir.org/2023/1/e42258 |
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