A new way of analysing symmetrical and asymmetrical gaits in quadrupeds

This new approach highlights for the first time that all the gaits, symmetrical as well as asymmetrical, correspond to the succession of sequences that start by the movements of the two fore limbs, followed by the movements of the two hind limbs. Inside those sequences, the gaits are identified by the time lag between the movements of the two pairs and by the time lag between the movements of the two feet inside each pair. This approach, by breaking the stride paradigm, gives a new framework to locomotion analysis. (C) 2003 Published by Editions scientifiques et medicales Elsevier SAS on behalf of Academie des sciences.