Abstract
This study examined how accurately people can discriminate differences in the friction of flooring samples. Flooring samples of either different friction or elasticities were presented by placing two walking boards made of plywood, each surfaced with one of three different flooring samples, in an end-to-end fashion. Ten young adults whose sight was temporarily cut off by eye masks were asked to walk on the path for 108 trials and indicate whether the flooring samples were different or not. Generally, the percentages of correct answers for the pairs of flooring samples with different frictions were low compared with the percentages of correct answers for the pairs of flooring samples with different elasticity. However, the subjects who scuffed their heel on the ground prior to step on to the samples discriminated the differences fairly accurately, even for the materials with different frictions.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 1705-1711 |
| Number of pages | 7 |
| Journal | Nihon Kikai Gakkai Ronbunshu, C Hen/Transactions of the Japan Society of Mechanical Engineers, Part C |
| Volume | 75 |
| Issue number | 754 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 2009 Jun |
| Externally published | Yes |
Keywords
- Human engineering
- Human interface
- Medical and welfare assistance
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Mechanics of Materials
- Mechanical Engineering
- Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering