Figure 2.

Example of the detection of the onset of the EMG activity by the manual method. The figure shows the software layout viewed by the assessors when performing the manual analysis. The red arrow indicates where the assessor judged the onset of the diaphragm/intercostals EMG onset occurred. The black arrow indicates the time in seconds (provided by the software) when the assessor indicated the diaphragm/intercostal EMG onset occurred. The assessor would type the seconds indicated by the software in a Excel file with a millisecond accuracy. This processed was repeated breath-by-breath for each muscle. EMG RMS, root mean square of the EMG signal; DIA/IC, diaphragm/intercostal; PI, parasternal intercostal; SCM, sternocleidomastoid.