• Journal of the Korean Society of Safety
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• v.25 no.6
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• pp.65-69
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• 2010

This paper presented an experimental study of slip resistance characteristics of shoes and floor surface contact with special focus on the effect of surface roughness, outsole material and mechanical abrasion. The factors that affected the results of slip resistances were investigated for four kinds of rubbers and five kinds of floor samples using the VIT(English XL) tribometer. The slip resistance was observed to increase gradually with increasing roughness for five kinds of floor roughness. In the higher surface roughness (larger than $11.5{\mu}m$), the slip resistance increased more rapidly and exceeded safety criteria at $22.60{\mu}m$. The slip resistance was observed to decrease with increasing hardness of outsole, except for butylenes rubber, which seemed to show the material property. The slip resistance decreased with number of trials. In the first several times(5 or 6 trial), the slip resistance decreased more rapidly, whereafter it approached gradually constant value. The slip resistance of surfaces has generally been shown to increase with floor surface roughness and to decrease with hardness of outsole and number of trials under the wet condition.

• Korean Journal of Applied Biomechanics
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• v.18 no.3
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• pp.1-10
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• 2008

One of the major factors affecting maneuverability of an athlete is frictional force caused at an outsole of his shoe. The magnitude of the frictional force is closely related to pattern and hardness of outsole and roughness of ground or floor. This study then focuses on the effect of outsole pattern of sports shoes on the frictional force. After surveying outsole patterns of sports shoes in markets, we select 4 types of outsole patterns, such as straight, W, O, and wave as primary outsole patterns of sports shoe and we also select depth, pitch and slope as design parameters of each pattern. Corresponding to those patterns and design parameters, various outsole specimen are prepared for frictional experiments. After performing frictional tests with those specimen, coefficients of friction(COF) are collected and analyzed with a statistical tool to draw useful conclusion.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.10 no.12
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• pp.3833-3838
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• 2009

This paper introduces a measurement system for mechanical properties of sport shoes using an industrial robot. The robot system used in this paper is a commercial Puma type robot system(FARA AT2 made by SAMSUNG Electronics) with 6 joints and the end-effector is modified to produce a human walking motion. After analyzing human walking with a high speed video camera, each joint angle of the robot system is extracted to be used in the robot system. By using this system, ground impact forces were measured during stepping motion with 3 different shoe specimens made of 3 different hardness outsoles, respectively. As other mechanical properties, both bending moments to bend the toe part of the same specimen shoes and pronation quantities during walking motion were measured as well. In the impact test with the same depth of deformation under the ground level, the effect of the outsole hardness was clearly appeared such that the harder outsole produces the higher ground reaction force. The bending test and the pronation test also show proportional increments in the bending stiffness and the moment Mx according to the outsole hardness. Throughout such experiments, the robot system has produced consistent results so that the system could be used in obtaining valuable informations for a shoe designing process.

• Korean Journal of Applied Biomechanics
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.361-380
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• 2002

The purposes of this study were to a analysis of friction relation between tennis outsole and tennis playing surfaces. Tennis footwear is an important component of tennis game equipment. It can support or damage players performance and comfort. Most importantly athletic shoes protect the foot preventing abrasions and injuries. Footwear stability in court sports like tennis is incredibly important since it is estimated that as many as 45% of all lower extremity injuries occur in the foot and ankle. The friction force is the force exerted by a surface as an object moves across it or makes an effort to move across it. The friction force opposes the motion of the object. Friction results when two surfaces are pressed together closely, causing attractive intermolecular forces between the molecules of the two different surfaces. The outsole provides traction and reduces wear on the midsole. Today's outsoles address sport specific movements (running versus pivoting) and playing surface types. Different areas of the outsole are designed for the distinct frictional needs of specific movements. Traction created by the friction between the outsole and the surface allows the shoe to grip the surface. As surfaces, conditions and player motion change, traction may need to vary. An athletic shoe needs to grip well when running but not when pivoting. Laboratory tests have demonstrated force reductions compared to impact on concrete. There is a correlation between pain, injury and surface hardness. These are a variety of traction patterns on the soles of athletic shoes. Traction like any other shoe characteristic must be commensurate and balanced with the sport. The equal and opposite force does not necessarily travel back up your leg. The surface itself absorbs a portion of the force converting it to other forms of energy. Subsequently, tennis court surfaces are rated not only for pace but also for the percentage of force reduction.

• Journal of the Ergonomics Society of Korea
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• v.25 no.4
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• pp.115-119
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• 2006

To investigate the effects of independent suspension technology(IST) of hiking boot on the stability and load of foot, eight participants performed medial and lateral drop landing from 33.4cm height and 85cm distance to uneven surface while wearing normal & IST hiking boots. For the stability of foot during the drop landing, the balance angle & suspension angle and rearfoot angle was analyzed using high-speed video analysis. Also kinetic analysis using the force plate and insole pressure measurement was conducted to analyze vertical & breaking ground reaction force and pressure distribution. Not only the balance angle & suspension angle but also rearfoot angle was improved with IST boots for lateral drop landing. These results indicate the IST boots may have the suspension function which keeps the foot to be stable during landing. However the IST boots did not show any effect for medial landing. This might be related to the hardness of medial part of outsole. Therefore the softer outsole of medial part could be recommended. Furthermore the impact force & breaking force and insole pressure were reduced with IST boot. These results means that IST boot has not only cushioning effect but also good grip effect. Therefore the hiking boots applied the independent suspension function may help to reduce fatigue and prevent injury such as ankle sprain in hiking on uneven surface.

• Korean Journal of Applied Biomechanics
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• v.26 no.4
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• pp.413-420
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• 2016

Objective: The purpose of this study was to analyze and compare different kinds of outdoor walking shoes in terms of muscle fatigue and ground reaction force on walking, and to provide foundational data for developing and choosing outdoor walking shoes that fit the users. Method: The study subjects were 30 healthy men. The experiment was conducted by using outdoor walking shoes with different inner and outer harnesses of the midsole, and shapes of the outsole. For data collection, electromyography was used to measure the muscle fatigue of the anterior tibial muscle and gastrocnemii, which contribute to the dorsiflexion and plantarflexion of the ankle joint, and the biceps muscle of the thigh and lateral great muscles, which contribute to the flexion and extension of the knee joint. A GRF measurement device was used to measure the X, Y, and Z axes. Results: In the type A outdoor walking shoes, regarding the hardness of the midsole, the inner part was soft, while the outer part was hard. The vertical ground reaction force was the lowest, which means least impact while walking and light load to the knees and ankles. The type C outdoor walking shoes were intended to provide a good feel in wearing the shoes. The tibialis anterior, biceps femoris, and gastrocnemii indicate low fatigue, which means that during a long-distance walk, it will minimize the fatigue in the muscles of the lower limbs. Conclusion: To sum up the study results, the different types of outdoor walking shoes indicate their unique characteristics in the biomechanical comparison and analysis. However, the difference was not statistically significant. Thus, a systematic and constant follow-up research should be conducted to cope with expanding market for outdoor walking shoes. Lastly, this study is expected to present foundational data and directions for developing outdoor walking shoes.

• Clean Technology
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• v.15 no.3
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• pp.172-179
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• 2009

The thermoplastic polyurethane waste (TPU-S) with good tensile properties, hardness, NBS abrasion resistance, specific gravity and low wet coefficient of kinetic friction was melt-blended with ethylene propylene diene monomer rubber (EPDM) with high wet slip resistance and low mechanical properties to form EPDM/TPU-S blend films, and their composition-property relationship was investigated to find the optimum composition for shoe outsole material. The properties except the wet slip resistance increased with increasing TPU-S contents in the blend. All the properties except elongation at break, specific gravity and the wet coefficient of kinetic friction in the range of $0{\sim}65\;wt%$ of TPU-S did not attain the values predicted by the simple additive rule. The optimum weight ratio of EPDM/TPU-S for the application to the typical shoe outsole material was found to be 30/70.

• Journal of Adhesion and Interface
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.55-59
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• 2018

In this study, to overcome a complicated shoe adhesion process such as buffing, pre-treatment by primer in the rubber component of the shoe, we studied adhesion mechanical properties with rubber compound added water-soluble salt for the purpose of improving the adhesion between midsole and outsole. Acid salts, basic salt and neutral salts were evaluated, rubber containing basic salts showed excellent adhesion to water-based adhesion. Since the basic salt is present as the hydroxy salt, the surface of rubber is hydrophilized. The results are confirmed by contact angle and IR spectroscopy measurement. In addition, in the case of rubber compound added basic salts, NBS abrasion resistance and hardness were increased by increasing crosslink density, but crosslink time was delayed.

• Journal of Convergence for Information Technology
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• v.8 no.6
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• pp.59-66
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• 2018

The utilized coefficient of friction (UCOF) as a ratio of the shear force to the normal force on the ground during walking is used to identify the point at which slip is likely to occur. Shoe walking will change the utilized coefficient of friction by shoe design such as sole thickness and hardness, heel shape, and outsole pattern. In this study, subjects are 21 adults (10 female, 11 male, age: $25.2{\pm}2.3yrs$, height: $165.6{\pm}7.2cm$), analysis variables were walking speed, GRF, when the UCOF is maximal, and Tangent of CoP-CoM angle, and correlation analysis with the utilized friction coefficient (UCOF). As a result, First, for the shod walking the time point which UCOF is maximum about heel strike was faster and the magnitude was larger than for barefoot walking. Second, the correlation between the tangent of CoP-CoM and UCOF of right foot was higher at the left heel striking point (UCOF2_h) which occurred in the post propulsion phase than at the right heel striking point (UCOF1_h). This suggests that the right foot UCOF is related to the braking phase of left foot( which is the propulsion phase of right foot) rather than the braking phase of right foot.