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Understanding of product-soft tissue interface and related discomfort is essential while designing wearable devices. Although pressure thresholds at the perception of discomfort and pain have been measured in the past, associated tissue deformation is yet to be studied. This data can provide a holistic understanding of user discomfort and be a valuable reference for ergonomic product design. Hence, in the current study, tissue deformation at discomfort and pain threshold was measured using an ultrasound indentation device at 18 landmarks for 83 Chinese adults on the head and face. Results show that deformation was higher in the facial region than the scalp and forehead, with maximum deformation in the cheek area and minimum in the forehead region for both thresholds. Also, for most landmarks, the tissue deformation data showed no significant relationship with age and Body Mass Index (BMI). Nearly half of the landmarks exhibited significant gender-based differences. Overall, the measured data showed acceptable within-session and between-session reliability.

Designing products and services to fit human needs, wants and lifestyle require meaningful data. With Industry 4.0 and the internet of things, we have many ways to capture data using sensors and other means. InfraRed (IR) cameras are quite ubiquitous, especially for screening illness and wellness. They can provide a wealth of data on different objects and even people. However, their use has been limited due to processing complexities. With reducing cost and increasing accuracy of IR cameras, access to thermal data is becoming quite widespread, especially in medicine and people-related applications. These cameras have software to help process the data, with a focus on qualitative analyses and rather primitive quantitative analyses. In ergonomics, data from multiple users are essential to make reasonable predictions for a given population. In this study, using 4 simple experiments, several quantitative analysis techniques such as simple statistics, multivariate statistics, geometric modeling, and Fourier series modeling are applied to IR images and videos to extract essential user and population data. Results show that IR data can be useful to provide user and population data that are important for design. More research in modeling IR data and application software is needed for the increased application of IR information in ergonomics applications.

In the past only health care professionals wore facemasks daily, but in recent times almost all citizens of many countries are expected to wear facemasks to reduce infection at work and in public. Because of SARS and now COVID-19, facemasks have become an essential personal protective equipment to fight against infectious disease. Frequent use of mask has proven to provide significant protection in reducing infections, even though there are complaints about its long-term usage. Although there are many types of masks, the surgical mask and the N95 respirator are the common ones. In this study, the surgical mask and the N95 respirator were compared with a no-mask condition. Results indicated that participants wearing the N95 respirator had the most significant thermal discomfort. The surgical mask was also significantly uncomfortable when compared to the no mask condition. Infrared thermographic results indicated that the heat retained when wearing a mask is higher than without a mask. Results of this study show the importance in mask design to have sufficient protection, comfort and fit.

Helmets are often recommended as primary safety equipment for protecting the head. Several studies have been conducted to test the effectiveness of different impact-absorbing liner materials and their response to high impact loading. The standard helmets have an impact-absorbing liner of a single material, which may not be the best design approach. Hence, the possibility of modular helmet liner design with two different materials has been explored in this study. The chapter presents a preliminary Finite element analysis (FEA) study to evaluate the performance of hard foam, soft foam and a combination of both the foams as impact-absorbing liners for helmets. The results suggest that the hard foam liner showed better performance for high impact loads, while the soft foam liner was more effective for low impact loads. The results also indicated that the modular design-based helmet liners developed using both the hard and soft foam performed better than single foam liners.

The human foot is very complex, and the development of digital models is still at its infancy. Different researches are being carried out and the results are presented in a simplified form. Furthermore, in many cases, research results from different groups vary widely because of different data samples, gender, age, etc. This chapter provides some sample data such as anthropometric data, 3D data and representation, MRI scan data, CAT scan data, and thermal data. Foot data is very important to students, researchers, and practitioners as it can enable statistical analysis, development of analysis method, and the design and development of better fitting footwear to improve foot health.

Footwear design, manufacturing, and production is entering a new phase of revolution with shorter design and manufacturing cycles. Although consumers expect shorter lead time, they are also becoming more and more demanding in terms of style, comfort, and fit. Consumers are very aware of 3D technologies and hence they expect the use of 3D technologies. Therefore, companies are starting to adopt 3D technologies in the design and development of footwear throughout the product life cycle. Nowadays, capturing the 3D shape is cheap and easy, and any products can be converted into 3D using low-cost and widely available 3D scanners. The scanned data, if required, can be modified using 3D design software. 3D design software is popular because of their ease of design, design modification, visualization, and rendering. Furthermore, footwear design developed based on 3D shoe last, enables changes of the 3D shoe last to automatically update the 3D upper design, outsole, and insole design. Functional properties of footwear such as thermal comfort, moisture management, and fit are also being considered during the design phase. In addition to footwear functional properties, creative design based on 3D enables quick design modification and visualization. The final design can then be manufactured using traditional manufacturing techniques or using a 3D printing technique. Currently, 3D printing is still evolving, and it is not the main footwear manufacturing method. 3D printing technologies have huge potential, hence more development in this area will make traditional manufacturing probably less important and, in some cases, obsolete.

The shoe last, a 3D mould for making a shoe, is, generally speaking, not well understood by shoe designers. A shoe last not only influences style and fashion, but also comfort and fit. This chapter discusses the design of shoe lasts, including definitions and shoe last main design curves. Additionally, shoe lasts of different heel height and orientations are provided, to enable designers to create new shoe lasts and eventually design shoes.

Background: Conservative treatment, Ponseti method, has been considered as a standard method to correct the clubfoot deformity among Orthopedic society. Although the result of conservative methods have been reported with higher success rates than surgical methods, many more problems have been reported due to improper casting, casting pressure or bracing discomfort. Nowadays, infrared thermography (IRT) is widely used as a diagnostic tool to assess musculoskeletal disorders or injuries by detecting temperature abnormalities. Similarly, the foot skin temperature evaluation can be added along with the current subjective evaluation to predict if there is any casting pressure, excessive manipulation, or overcorrections of the foot, and other bracing pressure-related complications.Purpose: The main purpose of this study was to explore the foot skin temperature changes before and after using of manipulation and weekly castings.Methods: This is an explorative study design. Infrared Thermography (IRT), E33 FLIR thermal imaging camera model, was used to collect the thermal images of the clubfoot before and after casting intervention. A total of 120 thermal images (Medial region of the foot–24, Lateral side of the foot–24, Dorsal side of the foot−24, Plantar side of the foot−24, and Heel area of the foot–24) were collected from the selected regions of the clubfoot.Results: The results of univariate statistical analysis showed that significant temperature changes in some regions of the foot after casting, especially, at the 2nd (M = 32.05°C, SD = 0.77, p = 0.05), 3rd (M = 31.61, SD = 1.11; 95% CI: 31.27–31.96; p = 0.00), and 6th week of evaluation on the lateral side of the foot (M = 31.15°C, SD = 1.59; 95% CI: 30.75–31.54, p = 0.000). There was no significant temperature changes throughout the weekly casting in the medial side of the foot. In the heel side of the foot, significant temperature changes were noticed after the third and fourth weeks of casting.Conclusion: This study found that a decreased foot skin temperature on the dorsal and lateral side of the foot at the 6th week of thermography evaluation. The finding of this study suggest that the infrared thermography (IRT) might be useful as an adjunct assessment tool to evaluate the thermophysiological changes, which can be used to predict the complications caused by improper casting, over manipulative or stretching and casting-pressure related complications.

Congenital talipes equinovarus is a musculoskeletal pediatric foot deformity, which is characterized by midfoot cavus, forefoot adductus, hindfoot varus and equinus (CAVE). A standardized objective assessment is essential to measure the severity of the clubfoot. Therefore, this study aimed to develop a three-dimensional assessment method to evaluate the clubfoot severity.

Adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) is a multifactorial, three-dimensional deformity of the spine and trunk. School scoliosis screening (SSS) is recommended by researchers as a means of early detection of AIS to prevent its progression in school-aged children. The traditional screening technique for AIS is the forward bending test because it is simple, non-invasive and inexpensive. Other tests, such as the use of Moiré topography, have reduced the high false referral rates. The use of infrared (IR) thermography for screening purposes based on the findings of previous studies on the asymmetrical paraspinal muscle activity of scoliotic patients compared with non-scoliotic subjects was explored in this study. IR thermography is performed with an IR camera to determine the temperature differences in paraspinal muscle activity. A statistical analysis showed that scoliotic subjects demonstrate a statistically significant difference between the left and right sides of the regions of interest. This difference could be due to the higher IR emission of the convex side of the observed area, thereby creating a higher temperature distribution. The findings of this study suggest the feasibility of incorporating IR thermography as part of SSS. However, future studies could also consider a larger sample of both non-scoliotic and scoliotic subjects to further validate the findings.

Functions like protection and comfort are essential requirements of the footwear or orthosis. Naturally, the status of foot anatomy features, judged from both inside and skin surface, is of great significance to the effectiveness of the product. In this study, a novel method to estimate the foot anatomy structural deformation from the skin surface in three typical postures is proposed, which can effectively reveal the inner anatomy status without using CT or MRI. Technology of scanning with range sensor is adopted, and it considerably promotes the efficiency of acquisition of the foot texture model. Reverse engineering tools are used to precisely catch the anatomical landmark locations, and the relevant data is shown in the way of comparison.

Functional and smart clothing has been an up-and-coming products for fashion industry. The human model or mannequin, which is a bridge between customer's physical information and design utilization, has vital importance as primary design tool. The physiological messages of human body may have growing needs for design. The traditional geometric human models (G-model), which convey surface anthropometric data, such as shape, volume and size, may be advanced to functional model. Thermal function is highlighted in this study, based upon an emphasized potential of developing new thermal functional clothing for health enhancement and rehabilitation purpose. After reviewing theoretical basis on thermoregulation and body temperature, as well as the future application in fashion industry, the methodology of developing thermal human model (T-model) is introduced, including experiments, data pre-processing and modeling process. The T-model originated from relatively accurate 3D body scanning data has visualized and quantified skin temperature data obtained from thermographs, which may be adopted to 3D fashion design system, e.g. designing, patternmaking, pattern revision, virtual fitting and grading for functional clothing.

Ear anthropometry is important in physical ergonomics for ear-related products. With various anthropometric methods, comparisons between different measuring techniques have not been sufficiently studied especially for ear dimensions. This study aimed at comparing traditional measurement and 3D scanning method for ear anthropometry, with addressing their usages in practice. For thirty participants, ear length and ear width were measured by the same investigator with two measuring methods. Traditional measurement was directly conducted with a caliper, whereas dimensions using 3D scanning technique were extracted from the point cloud acquired from a structured light scanner. Statistical results showed the differences between traditional and 3D scanning measurement, which can provide empirical evidences of differences between different measuring techniques for ear anthropometry. Additionally, the usages of different methods were discussed so that the proper method can be selected to match specific goals for future research.

The synthesis and application of layered double hydroxide (LDH) is gaining impetus for developing nano-hybrids with desired functionality. They are environmentally benign and of potential use in biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, drug design, flame retardancy, separation and membrane technology, filtration, scavenging and controlled release of anions, electro-active and photoactive materials. However, there has been a limited research in wearable textile applications. In this study, magnesium–aluminium LDH nano-particles were synthesized and applied to cotton fabric to enhance mechanical, ultraviolet protection and flame retardancy properties. In addition, their cytotoxicity tests were investigated to ensure safe wearable applications. It was found that the application of this Mg–Al nano-LDH (1.5%) with reactive remazol dye (98.5%) at 2% shade improved the UV protection (UV protection factor: 20.184), enhanced flame-suppressing capacity (limiting oxygen index from 16.5 to 20.8) with significantly increased tensile strength (76.85%) of cotton.

© 2016 - IOS Press and the authors. All rights reserved. Clubfoot, known as congenital talipes equinovarus, is one of the complex paediatric foot deformity with the incidence of 1 in every 1000 live births. It consists of four complex foot abnormalities such as forefoot adductus, midfoot cavus, and hindfoot varus and ankle equinus. There are a number of surgical techniques (soft tissue releases, arthrodesis) used to correct clubfoot. However currently the conservative management (manipulation, serial casting, and braces) of clubfoot is considered as the best choice and it is widely accepted among orthopaedists. Clubfoot treated with surgical techniques might suffer various complications such as soft tissues contractures, neurovascular complications, infections, and shortening of the limbs. Although conservative method is generally considered as an effective method, it is still challenging to cure clubfoot in advance stages. Also, the classification of the initial severity of clubfoot is essential to evaluate the outcome of the treatment. In this review, the aim is to review the different types of conservative method and the assessment of clubfoot severity.

Sizing and grading are very important in footwear production, directly influencing the fit and comfort of footwear. Currently, the footwear industry relies on traditional sizing and grading systems, which vary around the world. Modern measuring technologies, such as 3D scanning and modeling, are starting to be used in footwear mass production. Sizing and grading of footwear is closely related to the sizing and grading of foot. This study investigates the application of principal component analysis (PCA) in sizing and grading methods and the influence of footwear styles based on 3D foot shapes. Three sizing and grading methods were simulated and evaluated. Results show that, compared to the traditional method, the sizing and grading using PCA method provides less modeling error, hence will result in better fit. Furthermore, the prediction error for various footwear styles are significantly different and the footwear fit near the sole could be achieved easier than instep and ankle region. This indicates that various sizing and grading rules can be applied focusing on different footwear styles in order to develop optimal sizes. Relevance to industry The proposed new sizing and grading method could benefit the footwear industry since it provides a better fit comparing to the traditional method. The influence of footwear styles on prediction error gives more detailed insights for manufacturers to further understand the fitting result when applying the different sizing and grading methods.

Most anthropometric studies generally relate to one chosen population. We wanted to assess the variations among different age groups to get a better understanding of the changes to foot shape so that footwear can accommodate these changes satisfactorily. Footwear are not differentiated between adults and elderly, even though there are footwear for children primarily because of smaller feet. Three “age groups” of males and females were scanned at different times. The heel centerline was used to register each scan. Using predetermined algorithms, the digital data were processed to obtain 49 anthropometric variables that included various length, width, girth, and flare measures. The youngest group comprised 40 female children of mean age 8.1 yrs (standard deviation [SD] = 1.48 yrs), 40 males of mean age 8.4 yrs (SD = 1.8 yrs), 40 adult females of mean age 24 yrs (SD = 3.97 yrs), 40 adult males of mean age 21.7 yrs (SD = 2.90 yrs), 40 elderly females of mean 73.3 yrs (SD = 6.8 yrs), and 40 elderly males of mean age 75 yrs (SD = 7.58 yrs). No significant differences were found between left and right foot lengths, but there were significant differences in widths, girths, and heights. Allometric equations were developed to explain the variations over the various age ranges. The findings can help understand the growth of feet and the proper fitting, especially for the elderly.

Considering the complexity of product design, designers normally use a holistic approach to create a product based on target customers and market needs. To create products, many design tools and techniques used in most cases are qualitative. Although ergonomics design principals are widely taught in many design and engineering schools, it might be limited to anthropometry, usability testing, principals and check lists. Ergonomics research data and knowledge are not presented for easy use to designers, hence ergonomics aspects are often overlooked by designers during the ideation stage. Creative design, even though commercially successful, sometimes are looked down as it may not ‘pass’ the traditional ergonomics check list. Ergonomics tools need to be developed to consider the different stages in design. Ergonomics should consider developing tools and methods with designers in mind, so that ergonomics tools can be easily adapted by them. With a clear collaboration between designers and ergonomist better creative design with imbedded ergonomics can be created.

High-heeled shoes are associated with instability and a high risk of fall, fracture, and ankle sprain. This study investigated the effects of heel base size (HBS) on walking stability under different walking speeds and slope angles. The trajectory of the center of pressure (COP), maximal peak pressure, pressure time integral, contact area, and perceived stability were analyzed. The results revealed that a small HBS increased the COP deviations, shifting the COP more medially at the beginning of the gait cycle. The slope angle mainly affected the COP in the anteroposterior direction. An increased slope angle shifted the COP posterior and caused greater pressure and a larger contact area in the midfoot and rearfoot regions, which can provide more support. Subjective measures on perceived stability were consistent with objective measures. The results suggested that high-heeled shoes with a small HBS did not provide stable plantar support, particularly on a small slope angle. The changes in the COP and pressure pattern caused by a small HBS might increase joint torque and muscle activity and induce lower limb problems.

Background: Congenital talipes equinovarus (CTEV) or clubfoot is a common pediatric congenital foot deformity that occurs 1 in 1,000 live births. Clubfoot is characterized by four types of foot deformities: hindfoot equinus; midfoot cavus; forefoot adductus; and hindfoot varus. A structured assessment method for clubfoot is essential for quantifying the initial severity of clubfoot deformity and recording the progress of clubfoot intervention. Aim: This study aims to develop a three-dimensional (3D) assessment method to evaluate the initial severity of the clubfoot and monitor the structural changes of the clubfoot after each casting intervention. In addition, this study explores the relationship between the thermophysiological changes in the clubfoot at each stage of the casting intervention and in the normal foot. Methods: In this study, a total of 10 clubfoot children who are

Understanding dynamic foot is essential for foot health, footwear design and construction. This study was designed to investigate foot deformation during walking. A pilot experiment using motion capture system was conducted to record the landmark motion. The data showed the foot motion including landmark trajectories and the foot changes with time. In addition, the relative landmark position was further analyzed. The result showed the changes of foot landmarks. Application of this study will be useful for modeling dynamic foot shape, foot evaluation and footwear design.

Flip-flops may change walking gait pattern, increase muscle activity and joint loading, and predispose wearers to foot problems, despite that quantitative evidence is scarce. The purpose of this study was to examine the lower limb muscle co-contraction and joint contact force in flip-flops gait, and compare with those of barefoot and sports shoes walking. Ten healthy males were instructed to perform over-ground walking at self-selected speed under three footwear conditions: 1) barefoot, 2) sports shoes, and 3) thong-type flip-flops. Kinematic, kinetic and EMG data were collected and input to a musculoskeletal model to estimate muscle force and joint force. One-way repeated measures ANOVA was conducted to compare footwear conditions. It was hypothesized that flip-flops would induce muscle co-contraction and produce different gait kinematics and kinetics. Our results demonstrated that the musculoskeletal model estimation had a good temporal consistency with the measured EMG. Flip-flops produced significantly lower walking speed, higher ankle and subtalar joint range of motion, and higher shear ankle joint contact force than sports shoes (p < 0.05). There were no significant differences between flip-flops and barefoot conditions in terms of muscle co-contraction index, joint kinematics, and joint loading of the knee and ankle complex (p > 0.05). The variance in walking speed and footwear design may be the two major factors that resulted in the comparable joint biomechanics in flip-flops and barefoot walking. From this point of view, whether flip-flops gait is potentially harmful to foot health remains unclear. Given that shod walking is more common than barefoot walking on a daily basis, sports shoes with close-toe design may be a better footwear option than flip-flops for injury prevention due to its constraint on joint motion and loading.

© Springer International Publishing AG 2018. The skin is the major organ of integumentary system of human body and helps to maintain the body temperature, excretes the waste through sweating, protects deepest structures of the human body, and prevent from various problems such as water loss, infection. However, excessive sweating leads to infection in human body especially in the foot such as dermatophyte infection. This study aimed to investigate the foot skin temperature and humidity after wearing socks with shoes. It is a pre-post experimental design study. Ten subjects were selected for this study by convenience sampling methods. In this experiments, humidity and temperature, infrared images were recorded at baseline and post experiment. For this experiment, Infrared camera, HC 520 IN/OUT Temperature/ humidity, and the thermometer were used as outcome measurement and the total duration of pre and post-session consists of 3 h. The results revealed that the foot skin temperature was slightly increased in the left foot: 97.02 (mn), 2.51 (SD). Thus, there was no difference observed in temperature changes. However, humidity level increased in socks with shoes experiment in the post-experiment results. At the same time, we observed in the infrared thermal image analysis that there were physiological changes and post-test temperature changes on the skin of foot. In conclusion, this study revealed that socks with shoes are altered the humidity and foot skin temperature.

With the rapid development of functional product design, the digital human body applied to design and manufacturing need be improved with more information of the human body. Functional and smart clothing has been a popular trend among consumers. The human model or mannequin may not fully satisfied the increasing demands of anatomical and physiologic messages from the human body in a visual and accurate way. As one of the most important functions of clothing, thermal comfort plays a vital role in many functional clothing design. In this pilot study, a thermal model was introduced to lay a foundation for functional thermal clothing development. A step by step method was commentated to draw a map for functional model development. This model was constructed by geometric human model from 3D scanning data and 2D thermograms from IR camera. The skin temperature data of subject was transferred to exact 3D human body, the temperature distribution and features can be clarified easily for design and manufact...

We investigated a simple way of incorporating TiO 2 nano particle with reactive vinyl sulphone class dyeing of cotton. It has been observed that there is significant and lasting improvement in strength, wear resistance, stiffness and UV protection. The experimental results obtained from SEM, Raman, FTIR and UV visible spectral analysis along with physical property tests confirms the diffusion of TiO 2 nanoparticle along with dye into the fibre polymer matrix.

© 2015 The Authors A novel method including range-sensing scanning with texture and foot anatomical structure morphing basing on OpenSim is proposed. Palpation of important anatomical landmarks on foot surface was conducted by a physical therapist, and a range-sensing device, Microsoft Kinect sensor, was adopted for the 3D textured model acquisition. 3D coordinate data of the landmarks were measured and harnessed in OpenSim for subject-specific skeletal scaling based on a generic foot musculoskeletal model. The muscle attachment point coordinates derived from an anatomy database basing on sampling from East Asia people were used for muscle modelling. Then the 3D textured foot surface was registered with the morphed anatomical structures so that an integrated foot model was generated. The surface landmark locations were then compared with the corresponding internal bony sites and the errors were calculated to evaluate the accuracy and validity of this method. The potential error sources such as soft tissue thickness and scaling error were also mentioned and discussed. This technique is useful to create individual anatomically accurate human digital models for product design and development.

Improper footwear design causes injuries and illnesses, and hence it is important to understand not only the foot but also the footwear. In order to reduce injuries and illnesses, the foot and footwear have to match in such a way to avoid high pressure points and friction due to movements. As far as footwear fit is concerned, literature review has indicated that static footwear fit has mostly been studied, even though dynamic pressure, friction, and foot movement beyond the normal range of motion will cause different type of injuries and illnesses when compared to static fit. Therefore, this paper proposes a theoretical model for dynamic fit. The dynamic footwear fit model is developed similar to the NIOSH lifting equation. The dynamic fit is related to static fit and several multipliers related to footwear design, material properties, and time factor. More research is being carried out to set the parameter values of the theoretical model. The importance of this model is useful for quantification of dynamic footwear fit as it is more related to the actual situation. Better footwear fit, both static and dynamic, will generally improve foot health.

An internal arrangement of fibres in the yarn plays a key role in determining the physical properties and the performance characteristics of yarns and fabrics. Crosswise and lengthwise fiber migration and twist are important components to generate strength and cohesion in yarns. Their objective study is becoming essential as various new yarns has been developed with dissimilar properties and they are blended frequently. In addition, many modern techniques of spinning coming up since last few decades. Though new equipment and image processing techniques has been reported by few scientists, it is still jargon for new researchers to apply it for their own investigation. We demonstrated here how image processing technique in MATLAB could be employed by taking tracing fibre images from economic USB camera to evaluate tracing fibre angle accurately. This non-destructive evaluation method could potentially be applied in various fields of biomedical imaging, material engineering and other photogrammetric applications.

Technologies are changing the life of the human being. Fashion technology brings forward more and more convenience and comfort to people’s life. As the second skin, clothing plays a vital role on daily life. In aspects of art design, fashionable and colorful clothes make people obtain psychological satisfaction. From the ergonomic design, more attention was paid both on the physiological and psychological needs of the human being. For examples, the thermal physiology and compression comfort will directly have impact overall status of the health status of the human being. Especially, with development of functional fabrics and smart bio-medical sensors, functional and smart clothing has been an up-and-coming product for fashion industry and have been gradually accepted by the market. In the near future, with the changing of consumers’ consumption psychology, functional and smart clothing with fashionable design will be the mainstream of the market. Considering the fashion education system at present, fashion designers and fashion education will meet new challenges in the near future. Based on ergonomic design, innovative educations should be made accordingly. The research focused on the aspects of fashion education innovations, such as materials, clothing and accessories based on ergonomic design, which laid comprehensive foundations for functional fashion design.

Fashion for elderly is not a new concept in the fashion industry, but for Hong Kong market, it seemed much backward when compared to foreign countries. Modification on the new style silhouettes is a critical factor to increase the acceptance in Hong Kong market. This research hoped to demonstrate the new ideas of senior fashion and the new possible style were able to inspired fashion design students or designers to create their own collection with innovation and meaningful collections. Through understanding the senior fashion market, it was anticipated to benefit for the fashion lovers who are getting retired in the next 5 to 10 years. This study developed fashion elements of materials, graphic, embellishment, style and garments design with illustrations and adopted them to questionnaire survey to the elderly fashion in Hong Kong.

In order to achieve better comfort and fit for designed products it is important to understand the product and user interface and to analyze the interaction at the region of contact. Study of biomechanical properties of soft tissue can provide a good insight of this interface between user and the product. Biomechanical properties can help the designers in material selection which can improve the comfort and fit and help in serving the purpose of the designed product. A sample study of soft tissue thickness of human head and face was conducted using an ultrasound indentation device at selected locations. Results showed the variation in soft tissue thickness levels, which was further used to discuss the role of soft tissue properties in the field of ergonomic product design.

© 2017 Ganesan et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. Background: Congenital talipes equinovarus (CTEV), also known as clubfoot, is common congenital orthopedic foot deformity in children characterized by four components of foot deformities: hindfoot equinus, hindfoot varus, midfoot cavus, and forefoot adduction. Although a number of conservative and surgical methods have been proposed to correct the clubfoot deformity, the relapses of the clubfoot are not uncommon. Several previous literatures discussed about the technical details of Ponseti method, adherence of Ponseti protocol among walking age or older children. However there is a necessity to investigate the relapse pattern, compliance of bracing, number of casts used in treatment and the percentages of surgical referral under two years of age for clear understanding and better practice to achieve successful outcome without or reduce relapse. Therefore this study aims to review the current evidence of Ponseti method (manipulation, casting, percutaneous Achilles tenotomy, and bracing) in the management of clubfoot under two years of age. Materials and methods: Articles were searched from 2000 to 2015, in the following databases to identify the effectiveness of Ponseti method treatment for clubfoot: Medline, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINHAL), PubMed, and Scopus. The database searches were limited to articles published in English, and articles were focused on the effectiveness of Ponseti method on children with less than 2 years of age. Results: Of the outcome of 1095 articles from four electronic databases, twelve articles were included in the review. Pirani scoring system, Dimeglio scoring system, measuring the range of motion and rate of relapses were used as outcome measures. Conclusions: In conclusion, all reviewed, 12 articles reported that Ponseti method is a very effective method to correct the clubfoot deformities. However, we noticed that relapses occur in nine studies, which is due to the non-adherence of bracing regime and other factors such as low income and social economic status.

With the rapid development of CAD/CAM technology and information technology, it is becoming possible to satisfy the quality, fit and comfort requirements of footwear design and manufacturing. In the footwear industry, although there are availability of design and manufacture technologies to fulfill the desired requirements, the current methods are very expensive. Cheap and accurate scanners are needed at the retail shop to acquire 3D foot shape information. This paper proposes a prediction method to model foot shapes through scaling a standard foot by using limited parameters. The accuracy of different number of parameters have been evaluated. Given that commercial expensive scanner accuracy range from 0.5 to 1 mm, in order to predict 3D foot shape to an accuracy of around 0.75 mm, foot outline, foot profile, two foot sections and standard foot model were required. The mean modeling errors were 0.76 mm and 0.75 mm of the right foot and left foot respectively. Results indicate that if more sections are used the modeling error decreases but this will increase the cost of the scanner and the computational complexity. This method provides a cost effective method to substitute expensive 3D foot scanners that usually use laser-based technology. Relevance to industry : This method provides the core algorithm for the development of low cost 3D foot scanners for footwear mass-customization. CCD cameras can be used to capture foot profile and outline, while fixed line laser can be used to obtain two key sections. This method reduces the need for expensive linear gears and optical systems.

Background Few studies have investigated silent versus speaking situations while wearing various types of facemasks over a period of time. Objective The main objective of this study is the evaluation of temperature changes with time and the thermal comfort of facemasks under different verbal output conditions. Methods A two-way within-subject experiment was conducted to find the effects of facemask types and verbal output conditions. The infrared thermographic technology was used to record the video during the experiment. A subjective questionnaire was applied to measure the perception ratings of thermal discomfort. Results Wearing a facemask could result in a higher face temperature compared to the condition in which a facemask was not worn. The N95 mask created the highest temperature value in the cheeks and nose/mouth regions. The speaking condition did not present significant difference on face temperature compared to the silent condition. Participants tended to provide higher subjective ratings of perceived humidity, heat, breathing difficulty and overall discomfort while wearing facemasks, especially while wearing the N95 mask and during the speaking conditions. Conclusions Facial temperature distribution demonstrated various trends with time under different conditions. Facemask types had significant effects on facial temperature and perceived thermal comfort.

With the rapid development of 3D scanners, graphic accelerated hardware and 3D modeling tools, the application of 3D model databases is growing in both numbers and sizes, e.g. 3D body scans, head model and virtual mannequins. There is a pressing need for effective content-based 3D model retrieval methods. In this paper, a novel 3D model retrieval approach is proposed by using the Fuzzy Weighted Symmetrical Depth Images (FW-SDI). Firstly, three symmetrical planes of the 3D model are obtained based upon principal plane analysis and sequential quadratic programming, which are the distinctive characteristics of 3D model and perpendicular to each other. Secondly, three novel depth Images (NDI) and three depth differential images (DDI) are extracted by projecting the 3D surface to the proposed symmetrical planes. The Fourier descriptors of the novel depth Images and depth differential images are calculated. Finally, a fuzzy weighted procedure is conducted for combining the Fourier descriptors of NDI and DDI. Experiment results show that the proposed method can achieve better retrieval performance than others.

The shoe industry is a very competitive industry and in order to capture the market, customized shoes are desired nowadays to satisfy consumers’ needs on style, fit and comfort. Companies need to e...