Article

We aimed to determine whether inclination angles of the line connecting the whole
body center of mass (COM) to the center of pressure (COP) (COM-COP angle) help
predict the required coefficient of friction (RCOF) in young adult males during
the weight acceptance and push-off phases in transient movements such as turning,
gait termination and initiation, and steady-state movements such as straight
walking. Seventeen healthy young adult males were asked to (1) walk in a straight
line, (2) turn 60 degrees with either foot (step and spin turns), and (3)
initiate and terminate walking on a dry level floor. Peak absolute values of the
ratio between resultant horizontal and vertical ground reaction forces during the
weight acceptance and push-off phases (RCOFh and RCOFt, respectively) were
calculated. COM-COP angles thetah and thetat at the instant of RCOFh and RCOFt,
respectively, were also calculated. Bivariate regression analysis demonstrated
that the |thetah| and |thetat| tangents were significant predictors of RCOFh (R =
0.878; R(2) = 0.770; p<0.001) and RCOFt (R = 0.918; R(2) = 0.843; p<0.001),
respectively. The results suggest that COM and COP kinematics (i.e., the COM-COP
angle) serve as a predictor of friction requirement during the weight acceptance
and push-off phases in steady-state movements such as straight walking and
transient movements such as turning as well as gait termination and initiation.
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Langue : ANGLAIS