• Journal of Korean Foot and Ankle Society
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• v.28 no.1
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• pp.21-26
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• 2024

Purpose: Foot pressure measurement devices are used widely in clinical settings for plantar pressure assessments. Despite the availability of various devices, studies evaluating the inter-device reliability are limited. This study compared plantar pressure measurements obtained from HR Mat (Tekscan Inc.) and EMED-n50 (Novel GmbH). Materials and Methods: The study involved 38 healthy male volunteers. The participants were categorized into two groups based on the Meary's angle in standing foot lateral radiographs: those with normal feet (angles ranging from -4° to 4°) and those with mild flatfeet (angles from -8° to -15°). The static and dynamic plantar pressures of the participants were measured using HR Mat and EMED-n50. The reliability of the contact area and mean force was assessed using the interclass correlation coefficient (ICC). Furthermore, the differences in measurements between the two devices were examined, considering the presence of mild flatfoot. Results: The ICC values for the contact area and mean force ranged from 0.703 to 0.947, indicating good-to-excellent reliability across all areas. EMED-n50 tended to record higher contact areas than HR Mat. The mean force was significantly higher in the forefoot region when measured with EMED-n50, whereas, in the hindfoot region, this difference was observed only during static measurements with HR Mat. Participants with mild flatfeet exhibited significantly higher contact areas in the midfoot region for both devices, with no consistent differences in the other parameters. Conclusion: The contact area and mean force measurements of the HR Mat and EMED-n50 showed high reliability. On the other hand, EMED-n50 tended to record higher contact areas than HR Mat. In cases of mild flatfoot, an increase in contact area within the midfoot region was observed, but no consistent impact on the differences between the two devices was evident.

• The korean journal of orthodontics
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• v.40 no.5
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• pp.304-313
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• 2010

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the occlusal force and contact area and to find its associating factors in Koreans. Methods: Occlusal force and contact area in maximum intercuspation were measured using the Dental $Prescale^{(R)}$ system in 651 subjects (15 with normal occlusion, 636 with various malocclusions divided into subgroups according to the skeletal pattern, Angle's molar relationship, age and gender). Results: Occlusal force of the normal occlusion group ($744.5{\pm}262.6N$) was significantly higher than those of the malocclusion group ($439.0{\pm}229.9N$, $p$ < 0.05). Occlusal force was similar regardless of differences in ANB angle or Angle's molar classification, however the increase in vertical dimension significantly reduced occlusal force ($p$ < 0.05). Conclusions: Occlusal force was significantly lower in the malocclusion group compared to the normal occlusion group, and in females compared to males, but it was not affected by age, antero-posterior skeletal pattern or molar classification. Although a hyperdivergent facial pattern indicated lower occlusal force compared to a hypodivergent facial pattern, the differences in skeletal pattern were not the primary cause of its decrease, but a secondary result induced by the differences in occlusal contact area according to the facial pattern.

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers A
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• v.26 no.8
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• pp.1698-1708
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• 2002

The main topic covered in this paper is that of the impact process, that is, where two bodies come into contact and rebound or stick together. This paper presents how to determine the rebound velocities of a microparticle that approaches a surface with arbitrary initial velocities and relate the impact process to the physical properties of the materials and to the adhesion force. Actual adhesion forces demonstrate a significant amount of energy dissipation in the form of hysteresis, and act generally in a normal to the contact surfaces. Microparticles must also contend with forces tangent to the contact surfaces, namely Coulomb dry friction. The developed model has an algebraic form based on the principle of impulse and momentum and hypothesis of energy dissipation. Finally, several analyses are carried out in order to estimate impact parameters and the developed analytical model is validated using experimental results.

• PNF and Movement
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.59-66
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• 2022

Purpose: The aim of this research was to verify the relationship between three-dimensional (3D) ground reaction force (GRF) and severity of leg length discrepancy (LLD) while walking at a normal speed. It used a 3D motion analysis system with force platforms in standing workers with LLD. Methods: Subjects comprising 45 standing workers with LLD were selected. Two force platforms were used to acquire 3D GRF data based on a motion analysis system during gait. Vicon Nexus and Visual3D v6 Professional software were used to analyze kinetic GRF data. The subjects were asked to walk on a walkway with 40 infrared reflective markers attached to their lower extremities to collect 3D GRF data. Results: The results indicated the maximal force in the posterior and lateral direction of the long limb occurring in the early stance phase during gait had significant positive correlation with LLD severity (r = 0.664~0.738, p <0.01). In addition, the maximal force medial direction of the long limb occurring in the late stance phase showed a highly positive correlation with the LLD measurement (r = 0.527, p <0.01). Conclusion: Our results indicate that greater measured LLD severity results in more plantar pressure occurring in the foot area during heel contact to loading response of the stance phase and the stance push-off period during gait.

• Tribology and Lubricants
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• v.34 no.1
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• pp.23-32
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• 2018

Coupling is a mechanical component that transmits rotational force by connecting two shafts. Curvic coupling is widely used in high-performance systems because of its excellent power transmission efficiency and easy machining. However, coupling applications change dynamic behavior by reducing the stiffness of an entire system. Contact surface stiffness is an important parameter that determines the dynamic behavior of a system. In addition, the roughness profile of a contact surface is the most important parameter for obtaining contact stiffness. In this study, we theoretically establish the process of contact and bending stiffness analysis by considering the rough surface contact at Curvic coupling. Surface roughness parameters are obtained from Nayak's random process, and the normal contact stiffness of a contact surface is calculated using the Greenwood and Williamson model in the elastic region and the Jackson and Green model in the elastic-plastic region. The shape of the Curvic coupling contact surface is obtained by modeling a machined shape through an actual machining tool. Based on this modeling, we find the maximum number of gear teeth that can be machined according to the contact angle. Curvic coupling stiffness is calculated by considering the contact angle, and the calculation process is divided into stick and slip conditions. Based on this process, we investigate the stiffness characteristics according to the contact angle.

• Computers and Concrete
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• v.27 no.3
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• pp.199-210
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• 2021

The aim of this paper was to examine the continuous and discontinuous contact problems between the functionally graded (FG) layer pressed with a uniformly distributed load and homogeneous half plane using an analytical method and FEM. The FG layer is made of non-homogeneous material with an isotropic stress-strain law with exponentially varying properties. It is assumed that the contact at the FG layer-half plane interface is frictionless, and only the normal tractions can be transmitted along the contacted regions. The body force of the FG layer is considered in the study. The FG layer was positioned on the homogeneous half plane without any bonds. Thus, if the external load was smaller than a certain critical value, the contact between the FG layer and half plane would be continuous. However, when the external load exceeded the critical value, there was a separation between the FG layer and half plane on the finite region, as discontinuous contact. Therefore, there have been some steps taken in this study. Firstly, an analytical solution for continuous and discontinuous contact cases of the problem has been realized using the theory of elasticity and Fourier integral transform techniques. Then, the problem modeled and two-dimensional analysis was carried out by using ANSYS package program based on FEM. Numerical results for initial separation distance and contact stress distributions between the FG layer and homogeneous half plane for continuous contact case; the start and end points of separation and contact stress distributions between the FG layer and homogeneous half plane for discontinuous contact case were provided for various dimensionless quantities including material inhomogeneity, distributed load width, the shear module ratio and load factor for both methods. The results obtained using FEM were compared with the results found using analytical formulation. It was found that the results obtained from analytical formulation were in perfect agreement with the FEM study.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.4 no.5
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• pp.469-484
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• 1996

Green's functions are obtained in exact closed-forms for the elastic fields in bi-material elastic solids with slipping interface and differing transversely isotropic properties induced by concentrated point and ring force vectors. For the concentrated point force vector, the Green functions are expressed in terms of elementary harmonic functions. For the concentrated ring force vector, the Green functions are expressed in terms of the complete elliptic integral. Numerical results are presented to illustrate the effect of anisotropic bi-material properties on the transmission of normal contact stress and the discontinuity of lateral displacements at the slipping interface. The closed-form Green's functions are systematically presented in matrix forms which can be easily implemented in numerical schemes such as boundary element methods to solve elastic problems in computational mechanics.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Tribologists and Lubrication Engineers Conference
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• 2001.06a
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• pp.81-88
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• 2001

To study the influence of the shape of contacting bodies (especially the end profile) on slip regime, wear test is conducted in the case of the contact between tube and support. Two different end profiles of the support are used such as truncated wedge and rounded punch. During the test, 10, 30 and 50 N are applied as normal force and slip displacement varies between 10-200 $\mu\textrm{m}$. The tube and the support specimens are made of Zircaloy-4 and a specially designed wear tester is used. Tests are carried out in air at room temperature. Wear on the tube is examined by measuring microscope. Partial and gross slip regimes are classified from the observed wear shape. Surface roughness tester is also used to measure the wear depth and contour, from which wear volume is evaluated. The transition from partial to gross slip is also investigated by investigating the considerable increase of wear volume. From the result, the boundary between the partial and the gross slip is newly determined in the conventional fretting map for the present specific contact configuration. Since the transition is related with the amount of energy dissipation from the contact surface so is wear, it is regarded that wear can be restrained by designing a proper shape of support.

• Proceedings of the KSR Conference
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• 2009.05a
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• pp.905-911
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• 2009

The viscosity drive method by the wheel which is widely used in the conventional railway systems needs a large friction force between the wheel and the guide-rail, which brings on a thrust force for a quick acceleration and a high-speed travelling. In addition, the viscosity drive method needs an increase of the vehicle weight for a large friction force. However, a maglev train is possible to be driven by the electro-magnet instead of the wheel, which produces a levitation and thrust force without any contact. In general, low-speed maglev train uses a linear induction motor(LIM) for propulsion that is operated under 300[km/h] due to the power-collecting and end-effect problems of LIM. In case of high-speed maglev train, a linear synchronous motor(LSM) is more suitable than LIM because of a high-efficiency and high-output properties. LSM has a driving principle as same as a conventional rotary synchronous motor(RSM), and the torque of RSM becomes the thrust force of LSM. A conventional LSM has relatively large air-gap compared with a conventional RSM. So, it must be achieved a design that is considered normal force by finite-asymmetric structure, end-effect on the entry and exit part, and support structure of a moving part. Therefore, in this research, authors accomplish a conceptualizing and basic design of a small-scaled LSM, and characteristics analysis using FEM.

• Korean Journal of Applied Biomechanics
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.113-121
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• 2012

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of forefoot rocker shoes equipped with a metatarsal bar on lower extremity muscle activity and plantar pressure distribution. Ten healthy women in the age of twenties were participated in this study as the subjects. All subjects walked on a treadmill(Gait Trainer, BIODEX, USA) wearing normal shoes and metatarsal bar shoes, during which the plantar pressure distribution and muscle activity were measured. Using Pedar-X system(Novel Gmbh, Germany), the plantar pressure was measured for six regions of the foot: forefoot, midfoot, rearfoot, 1st metatarsal, 2-3th metatarsal, and 4-5th metatarsal, and for each sub-region, 4 features such as maximum force, contact area, peak pressure, and mean pressure were analyzed based on the plantar pressure. EMG(Electromyography) activity was measured by attaching surface electrodes to the rectus femoris, biceps femoris, tibialis anterior, and gastrocnemius medial head, and magnitude of muscle contraction was analyzed in IEMG(Integrated EMG) value. The results show that the maximum force, contact area, peak pressure, and mean pressure in the midfoot all increased while maximum force, peak pressure, contact area, mean pressure in the 1st metatarsal and 2-3th metatarsal all decreased when wearing functional shoes. Also, muscle activities in the four muscles were all decreased when wearing the functional shoes. This paper suggests that forfoot rocker shoes equipped with a metatarsal bar can help disperse the high pressure and absorb the shock to the foot as well as give positive influence on gait pattern and postural stability by reducing muscle fatigue during walking.