Worn region size of shoe outsole impacts human slips: Testing a mechanistic model

JOURNAL OF BIOMECHANICS

卷:105

Article

Sundaram, Vani H.^1,2  Hemler, Sarah L.³  Chanda, Arnab^3,5  Haight, Joel M.⁴  Redfern, Mark S.³  Beschorner, Kurt E.^2,3 

[1] Univ Colorado, Dept Mech Engn, Boulder, CO 80309 USA

[2] Univ Pittsburgh, Dept Mech Engn, Pittsburgh, PA 15260 USA

[3] Univ Pittsburgh, Dept Bioengn, Pittsburgh, PA 15260 USA

[4] Univ Pittsburgh, Dept Ind Engn, Pittsburgh, PA 15260 USA

[5] Indian Inst Technol Delhi, Ctr Biomed Engn, Delhi, India

关键词: Slips, trips, and falls;    Hydrodynamic lubrication;    Footwear;   

DOI  :  10.1016/j.jbiomech.2020.109797

来源: Elsevier

【 摘 要 】

Shoe outsole tread wear has been shown to increase slip risk by reducing the tread's ability to channel fluid away from the shoe-floor interface. This study establishes a connection between geometric features of the worn region size and slipping. A mechanistic pathway that describes the relationship between the worn region size and slip risk is assessed. Specifically, it is hypothesized that an increased worn region size leads to an increase in under-shoe fluid pressure, which reduces friction, and subsequently increases slipping. The worn region size, fluid pressure, and slip outcome were recorded for 57 participants, who were exposed to an unexpected slip condition. Shoes were collected from each participant and the available coefficient of friction (ACOF) was measured using a tribometer. A greater shoe worn region size was associated with increased slip occurrence. Specifically, a 1 mm increase in the characteristic length of the worn region (geometric mean of its width and length) was associated with an increase in slip risk of similar to 10%. Fluid pressure and ACOF results supported the mechanistic model: an increase in worn region size correlated with an increase in peak fluid pressure; peak fluid pressures negatively correlated with ACOF; and increased ACOF correlated with decreased slip risk. This finding supports the use of worn region size as a metric to assess the risk of slipping. (C) 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

【 授权许可】

Free