Calibration-Free Intelligent Wearables for Enhanced Knee Rehabilitation Management

The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
Department of Computer Science and Engineering


MPhil Thesis Defence


Title: "Calibration-Free Intelligent Wearables for Enhanced Knee 
Rehabilitation Management"

By

Mr. Jiaxi ZHANG


Abstract:

Knee diseases are prevalent in populations, including acute injuries such as 
anterior cruciate ligament tears and degenerative conditions like knee 
osteoarthritis. Effective rehabilitation is essential for functional 
recovery. However, challenges such as limited clinical resources and a lack 
of practical objective assessment methods hinder treatment efforts. Wearable 
sensing technologies present promising solutions for continuous monitoring, 
yet their clinical application is often complicated by calibration 
requirements.

This thesis addresses the issue of calibration dependency by developing two 
calibration-free wearable systems. The first system, RTSense, enables 
quantitative return-to-sport assessment after ACL reconstruction by 
capturing knee flexion angles during dynamic movements. The second system, 
KneeGuard, facilitates personalized gait re-training for knee osteoarthritis 
by simultaneously estimating the knee adduction moment and muscle forces 
during walking. Both systems employ innovative computational approaches to 
overcome calibration dependencies, demonstrating their feasibility for 
real-world applications.


Date:                   Monday, 4 August 2025

Time:                   10:00am - 12:00noon

Venue:                  Room 3494
                        Lifts 25/26

Chairman:               Prof. Song GUO

Committee Members:      Prof. Qian ZHANG (Supervisor)
                        Dr. Xiaojuan MA