74 results on '"skin tribology"'
Search Results
2. Epidermis as a Platform for Bacterial Transmission.
- Author
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Baquero, Fernando, Saralegui, Claudia, Marcos-Mencía, Daniel, Ballestero, Luna, Vañó-Galván, Sergio, Moreno-Arrones, Óscar M., and del Campo, Rosa
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EPIDERMIS ,MUCOUS membranes ,MEDICAL personnel ,BACTERIOLOGY ,BACTERIAL adhesion - Abstract
The epidermis constitutes a continuous external layer covering the body, offering protection against bacteria, the most abundant living organisms that come into contact with this barrier. The epidermis is heavily colonized by commensal bacterial organisms that help protect against pathogenic bacteria. The highly regulated and dynamic interaction between the epidermis and commensals involves the host's production of nutritional factors promoting bacterial growth together to chemical and immunological bacterial inhibitors. Signal trafficking ensures the system's homeostasis; conditions that favor colonization by pathogens frequently foster commensal growth, thereby increasing the bacterial population size and inducing the skin's antibacterial response, eliminating the pathogens and re-establishing the normal density of commensals. The microecological conditions of the epidermis favors Gram-positive organisms and are unsuitable for long-term Gram-negative colonization. However, the epidermis acts as the most important host-to-host transmission platform for bacteria, including those that colonize human mucous membranes. Bacteria are frequently shared by relatives, partners, and coworkers. The epidermal bacterial transmission platform of healthcare workers and visitors can contaminate hospitalized patients, eventually contributing to cross-infections. Epidermal transmission occurs mostly via the hands and particularly through fingers. The three-dimensional physical structure of the epidermis, particularly the fingertips, which have frictional ridges, multiplies the possibilities for bacterial adhesion and release. Research into the biology of bacterial transmission via the hands is still in its infancy; however, tribology, the science of interacting surfaces in relative motion, including friction, wear and lubrication, will certainly be an important part of it. Experiments on finger-to-finger transmission of microorganisms have shown significant interindividual differences in the ability to transmit microorganisms, presumably due to genetics, age, sex, and the gland density, which determines the physical, chemical, adhesive, nutritional, and immunological status of the epidermal surface. These studies are needed to optimize interventions and strategies for preventing the hand transmission of microorganisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
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- 2021
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3. Epidermis as a Platform for Bacterial Transmission
- Author
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Fernando Baquero, Claudia Saralegui, Daniel Marcos-Mencía, Luna Ballestero, Sergio Vañó-Galván, Óscar M. Moreno-Arrones, and Rosa del Campo
- Subjects
epidermis microbiota ,bacterial transmission ,protection pathogens ,heterogeneity transmitters ,skin tribology ,Immunologic diseases. Allergy ,RC581-607 - Abstract
The epidermis constitutes a continuous external layer covering the body, offering protection against bacteria, the most abundant living organisms that come into contact with this barrier. The epidermis is heavily colonized by commensal bacterial organisms that help protect against pathogenic bacteria. The highly regulated and dynamic interaction between the epidermis and commensals involves the host’s production of nutritional factors promoting bacterial growth together to chemical and immunological bacterial inhibitors. Signal trafficking ensures the system’s homeostasis; conditions that favor colonization by pathogens frequently foster commensal growth, thereby increasing the bacterial population size and inducing the skin’s antibacterial response, eliminating the pathogens and re-establishing the normal density of commensals. The microecological conditions of the epidermis favors Gram-positive organisms and are unsuitable for long-term Gram-negative colonization. However, the epidermis acts as the most important host-to-host transmission platform for bacteria, including those that colonize human mucous membranes. Bacteria are frequently shared by relatives, partners, and coworkers. The epidermal bacterial transmission platform of healthcare workers and visitors can contaminate hospitalized patients, eventually contributing to cross-infections. Epidermal transmission occurs mostly via the hands and particularly through fingers. The three-dimensional physical structure of the epidermis, particularly the fingertips, which have frictional ridges, multiplies the possibilities for bacterial adhesion and release. Research into the biology of bacterial transmission via the hands is still in its infancy; however, tribology, the science of interacting surfaces in relative motion, including friction, wear and lubrication, will certainly be an important part of it. Experiments on finger-to-finger transmission of microorganisms have shown significant interindividual differences in the ability to transmit microorganisms, presumably due to genetics, age, sex, and the gland density, which determines the physical, chemical, adhesive, nutritional, and immunological status of the epidermal surface. These studies are needed to optimize interventions and strategies for preventing the hand transmission of microorganisms.
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- 2021
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4. A parametric contact model to describe the interlocking of soft bodies with ridged surface textures used in haptic applications.
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Wilde, T.J. and Schwartz, C.J.
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SURFACE texture , *PARAMETRIC modeling , *CONTACT mechanics , *SURFACES (Technology) , *SURFACE interactions , *TOUCH - Abstract
Tactile interactions with product surfaces are essential to how such products are used and the value that users ascribe to them. It has been shown that contact mechanisms and frictional interactions are central to the haptic attributes perceived by the users. While there are established and well-studied models that describe the adhesive and deformation components of friction, interlocking behavior—while shown to be dominant in some tactile applications—has not been thoroughly studied as a frictional mechanism for soft materials such as skin, partly because of the complex contact mechanics involved. This investigation involved a computational parametric study of interlocking behavior between a soft material and a parallel-ridge surface texture, across a range of ridge widths, spacing and applied pressure. The goal of the work was to determine if a relatively simple contact model could be developed to predict the number of potential points of interlocking between the soft body and the ridge features. The results showed that a standard Hertzian approach predicted the number of ridge edge contacts (potential interlocking locations) with acceptable accuracy, so long as the ratio of ridge width to ridge spacing was large. However, a hybrid model that also incorporated the ridge width performed remarkably well across a wide range of ridge widths and spacing. This model may provide utility as an input into various proposed models of frictional interlocking to explain haptic perception of textured surfaces. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
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- 2019
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5. Texture design for light touch perception
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S. Zhang, X. Zeng, D.T.A. Matthews, A. Igartua, E. Rodriguez–Vidal, J. Contreras Fortes, and E. Van Der Heide
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Skin tribology ,Skin friction ,Surface texture ,Light touch ,Texture design ,Biotechnology ,TP248.13-248.65 ,Biochemistry ,QD415-436 - Abstract
This study focused on active light touch with predefined textures specially-designed for tactile perception. The counter-body material is stainless steel sheet. Three geometric structures (grid, crater and groove) were fabricated by pulsed laser surface texturing. A total number of twenty volunteers participated in the research which contains two parts: perception tests and skin friction measurements. The perception tests focused mainly on the participants׳ perceptual attributes: perceived roughness and perceived stickiness. For the skin friction measurements, a multi-axis force/torque transducer was used to measure the normal force and friction force between skin and counter-surface along with the fingertip position. The results of the predefined textures showed the ability to reduce skin friction due to the reduction of contact area. Moreover, the participants׳ perceptual attributes were greatly influenced by the predefined micro-structures in the light touch regime.
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- 2017
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6. The development of an artificial skin model and its frictional interaction with wound dressings.
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Chen, Jingmin, Yang, Hongmei, Li, Jiusheng, Chen, Jinyang, Zhang, Yadong, and Zeng, Xiangqiong
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ARTIFICIAL skin ,HYDROGELS ,HUMAN behavior ,ELASTIC modulus ,WATER utility rates ,WOUNDS & injuries - Abstract
Human skin interacts with various materials in our daily life. The interaction between human skin and contacting materials is very important for the development of skin contacting products. Owing to the ethic and different testing results because of the using of in vivo or ex vivo skin, it is important to develop an artificial skin model (ASM) for the study. Therefore, an ASM mimicking the deformation and friction behavior of in vivo human skin was designed based on the evaluation of in vivo human skin behavior, and its frictional interaction with wound dressings was studied. The ASM was prepared by the combination of hydrophilic network carboxyl chitosan (CC) and hydrophobic network polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS). The influence of ingredient ratio, including PDMS/CC and curing agent/PDMS ratio, on the mechanical property of ASM was determined firstly. By adjusting the curing agent/PDMS ratio, the water absorption swelling rate (WASR) of ASM could be controlled to mimic different hydration status of human skin. With the changing of ingredient ratio and hydration level, the elastic modulus and viscoelasticity of ASM can be tailored to be similar to that of in vivo human skin. When the PDMS/CC ratio was 7:3, and PDMS/curing agent ratio was smaller than 1:30, the elastic modulus of ASM was in the range of in vivo inner forearm, and with the increasing of indentation depth, the elastic modulus decreased. Based on the ASM, the frictional interaction between skin/wound dressing/mattress was studied. It was found that although the friction using ASM was slightly higher than that using in vivo inner forearm, but the friction decreasing trend was the same for different kinds of wound dressings. In addition, the friction tested with ASM was less fluctuation, more reliable and reproducible than that tested with in vivo skin, indicating that the ASM was suitable to be used for the studying of frictional interaction between skin and product, such as wound dressings. fx1 • An artificial skin model (ASM) was prepared by the combination of hydrogel and PDMS. • The water swelling rate of ASM could be adjusted to mimic different hydration status of human skin. • The mechanical property of ASM could be tailored to be similar to that of in vivo human skin by changing the formulation. • The frictional interaction between the ASM and wound dressings showed the similar trend as that of in vivo human skin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2019
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7. Bio-tribology of incontinence management products: additional complexities at the skin-pad interface.
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Motamen Salehi, Farnaz, Neville, Anne, and Bryant, Michael
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INCONTINENCE management , *ADHESION , *TRIBOLOGY , *SKIN care products - Abstract
Friction, shear forces and moisture between the human skin and textiles are important factors affecting skin injuries such as blisters, abrasions and decubitus ulcers. Whilst much research has been conducted to study the friction of skin-textile couples, the interactions between contact mechanics and incontinence management products are not well understood. This study addresses some tribological issues at the skin-textile interface using skin care products. It was observed that the use of skin care products and moisture can increase friction. This is due to changes in the mechanical properties of materials such as their compliance and the higher forces required to shear the interfaces in wet conditions. It was concluded that not only does the coefficient of friction vary, but also the mechanism of slip at the interface can be modified through the addition of medicated creams. This research highlights the importance of understanding the principles of contact mechanics of interfaces which can lead to significant improvement in incontinence management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2018
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8. Design of a tribometer for investigating tactile perception.
- Author
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Massi, Francesco, Vittecoq, Eric, Chatelet, Eric, Saulot, Aurelien, and Berthier, Yves
- Abstract
The understanding of the tactile perception mechanism implies the reproduction and measurement of friction forces and vibrations induced by the contact between the skin of human fingers and object surfaces. When a finger moves to scan the surface of an object, it activates the receptors located under the skin allowing the brain to identify surfaces and information about their properties. The information concerning the object surface is affected by the forces and vibrations induced by the friction between the skin and the rubbed object. The vibrations propagate in the finger skin and are converted into electric impulses sent to the brain by the mechanoreceptors. Because of the low amplitude of the induced vibrations, it results quite hard to reproduce the tactile surface scanning and measuring it without affecting measurements by external noise coming from the experimental test-bench. In fact the reproduction of the sliding contact between two surfaces implies the relative motion between them, which is obtained by appropriate mechanisms having a more or less complicated kinematics and including several sliding surfaces (bearings, sliders, etc.). It results quite difficult to distinguish between the vibrations coming from the reproduced sliding and the parasitic noise coming from the other sliding contact pairs. This paper presents the design and validation of a tribometer, named TRIBOTOUCH, allowing for reproducing and measuring friction forces and friction induced vibrations that are basilar for a clear understanding of the mechanisms of the tactile sense. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2018
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9. Measuring contact area in a sliding human finger-pad contact.
- Author
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Liu, X., Carré, M. J., Zhang, Q., Lu, Z., Matcher, S. J., and Lewis, R.
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FINGERS , *SKIN examination , *PREHENSION (Physiology) , *OPTICAL coherence tomography , *DIGITAL image processing - Abstract
Background/Purpose The work outlined in this paper was aimed at achieving further understanding of skin frictional behaviour by investigating the contact area between human finger-pads and flat surfaces. Methods Both the static and the dynamic contact areas (in macro- and micro-scales) were measured using various techniques, including ink printing, optical coherence tomography (OCT) and Digital Image Correlation (DIC). Results In the studies of the static measurements using ink printing, the experimental results showed that the apparent and the real contact area increased with load following a piecewise linear correlation function for a finger-pad in contact with paper sheets. Comparisons indicated that the OCT method is a reliable and effective method to investigate the real contact area of a finger-pad and allow micro-scale analysis. The apparent contact area (from the DIC measurements) was found to reduce with time in the transition from the static phase to the dynamic phase while the real area of contact (from OCT) increased. Conclusions The results from this study enable the interaction between finger-pads and contact object surface to be better analysed, and hence improve the understanding of skin friction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2018
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10. A study of the role of surface parameters on the relationship between biotribology and cognitive perception involved in the design of tactile graphics.
- Author
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Fast, Rachel H. and Schwartz, Christian J.
- Subjects
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SIMILARITY (Psychology) , *PATTERNS (Mathematics) , *FRICTION measurements , *VISION disorders , *ROBOT hands - Abstract
Tactual encoding of information is an essential aspect of communication in many aspects of life, but especially so for persons with visual impairments. The most common encoding is the use of topological features on a static medium such as paper. While Braille is widely used and effective for text transcription, the effective use of tactile graphics to communicate spatial or graphical information is less standardized. Tactile graphical techniques typically employ collections of individual topological features or texture patterns to communicate spatial information (maps, plots, diagrams), with the goal of minimizing reader confusion among the elements. In this study, the authors investigated the tribology and perception aspects of this complex issue in order to identify fundamental surface parameters which play a dominant role. Using texture specification guidelines published by the Braille Authority of North America (BANA), the investigators produced raised parallel-ridge textures on thermally activated tactile paper. The texture parameters modified included the width of ridges, spacing between ridges, and the inclination of the ridges to the pattern boundaries. Subjects reported their perception of tactile similarity or difference between members of texture pairs that were presented under a blind. Measurements of friction force were also collected for these textures to determine if friction mechanisms were most responsible for perceptive ability, or if other surface attributes played a dominant role. The study found that modifying pattern pitch improved perceptive ability to differentiate between adjacent mismatched texture patterns, but that ridge width had a deleterious effect. The results suggested that perceptive ability was not strongly related to various friction mechanisms proposed, but was closely correlated with changes in the number of pattern ridges in contact with the fingertip during tactile graphic exploration. • This psychophysical study involved the perceptive ability of sighted people to differentiate among tactile graphic textures. • Results provided evidence for texture grouping based on perceptive similarity. • Pattern pitch had a substantial positive impact in perceiving differences, while ridge width had a deleterious effect. • Friction mechanisms were ruled out as primary drivers of perceptive ability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
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- 2023
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11. Surface topography and contact mechanics of dry and wet human skin
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Alexander E. Kovalev, Kirstin Dening, Bo N. J. Persson, and Stanislav N. Gorb
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contact mechanics ,interface fluid ,roughness power spectrum ,skin tribology ,Technology ,Chemical technology ,TP1-1185 ,Science ,Physics ,QC1-999 - Abstract
The surface topography of the human wrist skin is studied by using optical and atomic force microscopy (AFM) methods. By using these techniques the surface roughness power spectrum is obtained. The Persson contact mechanics theory is used to calculate the contact area for different magnifications, for the dry and wet skin. The measured friction coefficient between a glass ball and dry and wet skin can be explained assuming that a frictional shear stress σf ≈ 13 MPa and σf ≈ 5 MPa, respectively, act in the area of real contact during sliding. These frictional shear stresses are typical for sliding on surfaces of elastic bodies. The big increase in friction, which has been observed for glass sliding on wet skin as the skin dries up, can be explained as result of the increase in the contact area arising from the attraction of capillary bridges. Finally, we demonstrated that the real contact area can be properly defined only when a combination of both AFM and optical methods is used for power spectrum calculation.
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- 2014
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12. Study of the temporal characteristics of friction and contact behavior encountered during braille reading.
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Darden, M.A. and Schwartz, C.J.
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FRICTION , *SENSES , *VISION , *TOUCH , *BRAILLE - Abstract
Beyond the sense of sight, the sense of touch is one of the primary ways that individuals experience their surrounding environment. Fundamentally understanding the relationship of skin-surface tribology and its elicited tactile attributes could provide a breakthrough in improving the ability to efficiently transmit tactile information to those who rely on the sense of touch to interact with their surroundings, such as the blind and visually impaired (BVI) community. The tactile language of braille has been adopted by the BVI community, employing configurations of raised dome-shape dots to convey what is ordinarily presented in text and image form. The coefficient of friction caused by skin sliding across a these dot features is hypothesized to affect the reader's tactile sensitivity, and skin-on-braille coefficient of friction has been investigated in previous work, where macro-scale deformation of the human fingerpad sliding over the dot contour was identified as the dominant friction mechanisms. This investigation succeeds that study by examining a simplified large-scale, two-dimensional representation of skin-on-braille sliding to characterize the underlying contact mechanisms in the loading behaviors that dictate the resulting coefficient of friction. This was accomplished by using a multi-axis tribometer to sliding a 25.4 mm radius cylindrical polyurethane (representing a human fingerpad) rod over a lubricated 3.17 mm aluminum half rod (representing a braille dot) under displacement-displacement-controlled conditions. The results from the tribometer study indicate that the presence of the dot feature drastically affects the vertical and lateral loading behavior by vertically displacing the body's elastic bulk, generating rubber-like Poisson effect contributions. Most importantly, the Poisson effect rapidly increases the lateral load when the body contacts the dot's leading edge, and rapidly decreases when the body rests largely in contact with the dot's trailing edge. This rapid decrease is caused by a “propulsion” effect, where vertical compression expands the material laterally, and when situated on the trailing edge of the dot, propels it into the direction of sliding, virtually negating adhesive surface friction. Computational modeling of this system discovered that while normal contact pressures dominated the fluctuations seen in the vertical loading, effects due to both normal contact pressures and frictional shears nearly equally drove the lateral loading behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2017
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13. A comparison of friction behaviour for ex vivo human, tissue engineered and synthetic skin.
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Bostan, L.E., Taylor, Z.A., Carré, M.J., MacNeil, S., Franklin, S.E., and Lewis, R.
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FRICTION , *TISSUE engineering , *TRIBOLOGY , *ELASTICITY , *EPIDERMIS - Abstract
Skin tribology is complex and in situ behaviour of skin varies considerably between test subjects. The main influencing factor, elasticity, varies due to structural and moisture differences. To find a more reliable test platform, for the first time, synthetic and biological (tissue engineered) substitutes were compared to ex vivo skin, epidermis and dermis. Friction initially increased with rising hydration, before decreasing beyond a threshold for all samples. Friction for Synthetic skin and dermis increased at a similar rate to the other samples, but from a different starting point, and friction dropped at lower hydration. Tissue engineered skin could provide a reliable test platform, but the synthetic skin could only be used if the offset in the data is accounted for. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2016
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14. Parametric investigation of soft-body penetration into parallel-ridged textured surfaces for tactile applications.
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Wilde, T.J. and Schwartz, C.J.
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SURFACE texture , *TRIBOLOGY , *IMPACT (Mechanics) , *FRICTION , *POTENTIAL theory (Physics) - Abstract
The tribological interactions between skin and textured surfaces has profound impact on both the tactile perception of the product being used, as well as the functionality of the product with regards to friction coefficient. Previous work has shown that parallel-ridged textures have vastly different friction coefficients with regards to the direction of skin sliding, and that penetration of the skin into the voids between ridges not only add contact area but also potential for interlocking. The ability to model skin penetration into textural elements would prove to be very useful for predicting friction; however, the mechanics of the problem are incredibly complex such that they rule out a closed-form analytical solution. The authors investigated soft-body penetration using a non-dimensional computational approach based on the elastic properties of skin, as well as the texture ridge geometry parameters, as well as the normal loading. Model results were verified experimentally. The model was applied to a number of different combinations of ridge parameters and it was found that the amount of penetration could be predicted very well using a simple exponential relationship among the nondimensional terms. Texture groove width and applied normal load played a dominant role in penetration. These results yield a quantitative mechanics model which can be integrated into an overarching frictional model to predict skin on texture behavior due to both adhesion and edge interlocking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2016
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15. A contact mechanics interpretation of the duplex theory of tactile texture perception.
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Fagiani, Ramona and Barbieri, Marco
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CONTACT mechanics , *SURFACE texture , *MECHANORECEPTORS , *PARAMETRIC modeling , *SURFACE geometry , *SCANNING systems - Abstract
The tactile perception of a surface texture originates from scanning a finger on the surface. This kind of sliding contact activates the mechanoreceptors located into the skin, allowing the brain to identify the object and to perceive information about the scanned surface. Perception is collected by mechanoreceptors either by sensing pressure or by sensing vibration: the first mechanism is typical of large spaced surface textures, while the second is necessary to perceive finer textures. These different behaviors are well known in the literature as the duplex perception mechanism. In the present paper a numerical model describing finger-surface scanning is introduced in order to investigate the relationship between contact induced vibrations and scanning conditions. The model has been validated by experimental comparisons in a previous work. The perception model is used to develop a parametric analysis of the vibration induced from the finger-surface scanning as a function of surface geometry, scanning speed and contact force. The proposed parametric analysis points out the minimum number of parameters needed to describe the tactile perception of a periodic texture, and it shows the tribological reasons for which duplex perception mechanism is an effective biological evolution towards optimal tactile perception. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
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- 2016
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16. A tribo-mechanical analysis of PVA-based building-blocks for implementation in a 2-layered skin model.
- Author
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Morales Hurtado, M., de Vries, E.G., Zeng, X., and van der Heide, E.
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POLYVINYL alcohol ,HYDROGELS ,BIOCOMPATIBILITY ,MECHANICAL behavior of materials ,TRIBOLOGY ,CELLULOSE synthase - Abstract
Poly(vinyl) alcohol hydrogel (PVA) is a well-known polymer widely used in the medical field due to its biocompatibility properties and easy manufacturing. In this work, the tribo-mechanical properties of PVA-based blocks are studied to evaluate their suitability as a part of a structure simulating the length scale dependence of human skin. Thus, blocks of pure PVA and PVA mixed with Cellulose (PVA-Cel) were synthesised via freezing/thawing cycles and their mechanical properties were determined by Dynamic Mechanical Analysis (DMA) and creep tests. The dynamic tests addressed to elastic moduli between 38 and 50 kPa for the PVA and PVA-Cel, respectively. The fitting of the creep compliance tests in the SLS model confirmed the viscoelastic behaviour of the samples with retardation times of 23 and 16 seconds for the PVA and PVA-Cel, respectively. Micro indentation tests were also achieved and the results indicated elastic moduli in the same range of the dynamic tests. Specifically, values between 45–55 and 56–81 kPa were obtained for the PVA and PVA-Cel samples, respectively. The tribological results indicated values of 0.55 at low forces for the PVA decreasing to 0.13 at higher forces. The PVA-Cel blocks showed lower friction even at low forces with values between 0.2 and 0.07. The implementation of these building blocks in the design of a 2-layered skin model (2LSM) is also presented in this work. The 2LSM was stamped with four different textures and their surface properties were evaluated. The hydration of the 2LSM was also evaluated with a corneometer and the results indicated a gradient of hydration comparable to the human skin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2016
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17. Surface engineering of tactile friction
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Dmitrii Sergachev, van der Heide, Emile, Matthews, David T.A., and Surface Technology and Tribology
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Contact model ,Materials science ,Friction ,Surface finish ,Surface engineering ,Composite material ,Surface texture ,Skin tribology - Abstract
In everyday life, people interact with numerous products through touch. A massive amount of information is generated through such tactile contact with a product surface. Surfaces thus influence the perception of the product physical properties, grip performance and forces applied during object handling and manipulation. The main aim of the current work is to control and enhance tactile perception through modification of the frictional behaviour by surface topography design. Following a systematic approach, an asperity and texture design was selected for this research. A contact model was developed to predict finger pad contact area on the micro- and macro- scales. The model was applied to understand the role of component parts in a tactile tribological system – namely to estimate skin elastic modulus, characterise skin deformation and determine the role of varying surface texture dimensions. A significant influence of the skin contact state on tactile friction was shown experimentally. Deterministic surfaces, which remained in asperity contact, showed a considerable reduction of friction coefficient. A bidirectional frictional behaviour was achieved with ellipsoidal texture design and was correlated to the feature geometry and material properties. The friction measurements performed with a group of volunteers, with the aim of normalisation, show that the reference sample can be used to normalise and compare values between individuals. A foundation for a texture design map is developed, towards establishing a connection between the texture dimensions and effects attributed to tactile friction. The design map can be used as a reference for the geometrical boundaries in surface texture design with the aim to control and predict frictional behaviour and to enhance tactile perception.
- Published
- 2021
18. Friction mechanisms and abrasion of the human finger pad in contact with rough surfaces.
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Derler, S., Preiswerk, M., Rotaru, G.-M., Kaiser, J.-P., and Rossi, R.M.
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FRICTION , *MECHANICAL abrasion , *CONTACT mechanics , *SURFACE roughness , *MECHANICAL behavior of materials - Abstract
The friction and abrasion behaviour of the finger pad on abrasive papers was investigated in friction experiments, combined with microscopic analyses and a protein assay to quantify skin particles abraded in friction contacts. Friction measurements at varied normal forces resulted in relatively high and load-independent friction coefficients, pointing to ploughing and abrasion as important friction mechanisms. The microscopic analyses revealed that large numbers of skin particles are abraded in form of single corneocytes, corneocyte fragments and agglomerates of corneocytes. In addition, micro-scratches were observed on the epidermal ridges of the finger pad after friction contacts. In friction measurements at the same conditions, the amount of abraded skin particles varied for abrasive papers with different roughness, while friction coefficients were comparable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2015
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19. A new water absorbable mechanical Epidermal skin equivalent: The combination of hydrophobic PDMS and hydrophilic PVA hydrogel.
- Author
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Morales-Hurtado, M., Zeng, X., Gonzalez-Rodriguez, P., Ten Elshof, J.E., and van der Heide, E.
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HYDROPHOBIC compounds ,POLYDIMETHYLSILOXANE ,SKIN physiology ,ELASTIC modulus ,POLYVINYL alcohol ,HYDROGELS - Abstract
Research on human skin interactions with healthcare and lifestyle products is a topic continuously attracting scientific studies over the past years. It is possible to evaluate skin mechanical properties based on human or animal experimentation, yet in addition to possible ethical issues, these samples are hard to obtain, expensive and give rise to highly variable results. Therefore, the design of a skin equivalent is essential. This paper describes the design and characterization of a new Epidermal Skin Equivalent (ESE). The material resembles the properties of epidermis and is a first approach to mimic the mechanical properties of the human skin structure, variable with the length scale. The ESE is based on a mixture of Polydimethyl Siloxane (PDMS) and Polyvinyl Alcohol (PVA) hydrogel cross-linked with Glutaraldehyde (GA). It was chemically characterized by XPS and FTIR measurements and its cross section was observed by macroscopy and cryoSEM. Confocal Microscope analysis on the surface of the ESE showed an arithmetic roughness ( R a ) between 14–16 μm and contact angle (CA) values between 50–60°, both of which are close to the values of in vivo human skins reported in the literature. The Equilibrium Water Content (ECW) was around 33.8% and Thermo Gravimetric Analysis (TGA) confirmed the composition of the ESE samples. Moreover, the mechanical performance was determined by indentation tests and Dynamo Thermo Mechanical Analysis (DTMA) shear measurements. The indentation results were in good agreement with that of the target epidermis reported in the literature with an elastic modulus between 0.1–1.5 MPa and it showed dependency on the water content. According to the DTMA measurements, the ESE exhibits a viscoelastic behavior, with a shear modulus between 1–2.5 MPa variable with temperature, frequency and the hydration of the samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2015
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20. Skin tribology phenomena associated with reading braille print: The influence of cell patterns and skin behavior on coefficient of friction.
- Author
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Darden, M.A. and Schwartz, C.J.
- Subjects
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SKIN physiology , *TRIBOLOGY , *BRAILLE , *TOUCH , *SENSES , *PEOPLE with visual disabilities - Abstract
Efficient transmission of tactile information is vital for individuals who rely on their sense of touch to interact with and navigate their surroundings, including visually impaired persons. Somatosensory phenomena have been investigated with respect to surface topologies and neuron sensitivities in the skin, but there is little knowledge of the specific skin tribology when reading tactual-coded information such as braille. Braille is a tactual code that employs raised dome-shaped dots in six-position cells (2 columns by 3 rows per cell), with various dot patterns representing individual text characters, punctuation or mathematical operators. Due to the hypothesized significance of friction on tactile sensitivity, the authors investigated the effect of basic braille dot configurations on friction coefficient in fingertip sliding. Initial studies investigated the effect of multiple dot-row configurations and media type on friction coefficient, but the tribological effect of individual features and associated skin interactions was ill-defined. Subsequently, the frictional effect of an individual dot of varying radius was investigated and modeled against a multi-term frictional model implementing Hertzian contact, the Greenwood–Tabor hysteresis component of a spherical indenter against a soft surface, as well as Wolfram׳s traditional adhesion model. The results of the study show that macro-scale deformation of the fingerpad during fingertip-on-dot sliding is the primary friction mechanism and suggest that the contribution due to a macroscopic feature is largely independent of sample medium. Based on this understanding, the effect of braille dot spacing on a dot׳s friction contribution was investigated. The results from the spacing study indicate that the fingerpad׳s interaction with dot pairs is highly influenced by dot feature spacing. Further work is necessary to identify the fundamental sliding mechanics at the finger-dot interface, but the ability to identify the frictional mechanisms as well as the sliding interactions will provide a means to understand how much of a role friction plays in braille character recognition, as well as suggest potential friction-based methods to enhance the information density of braille codes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2015
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- View/download PDF
21. The role of the sliding direction against a grooved channel texture on tool steel: An experimental study on tactile friction.
- Author
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Zhang, Sheng, Rodriguez Urribarri, Adriana, Morales Hurtado, Marina, Zeng, Xiangqiong, and van der Heide, Emile
- Subjects
- *
TOOL-steel , *FRICTION , *MECHANICAL loads , *SURFACE texture , *SURFACE structure - Abstract
To control tactile friction, that is the friction between fingertip and counter-body, the role of surface texture is required to be unveiled and defined. In this research, an experimental approach is used based on measuring tactile friction for directional texture (grooved channel) with varying depths. For a reference surface, in this current case a polished surface from the same tool steel is compared. The experimental results are analyzed to explain the observed skin friction behavior as a function of surface texture parameters, sliding direction and applied normal load. Sliding parallel to the groove length shows greater values in COF than sliding perpendicular to the groove direction. Furthermore, parallel sliding reveals a higher dependency of COF on the depth of the grooved channel texture than perpendicular sliding. Application of the two term friction model suggests that the adhesion component of friction has greater impact on parallel than perpendicular sliding direction. According to the observations, grooved channels are well suited to control skin friction in direction dependent sliding, for moderately loaded contact situations. This experimental research contributes to the haptic perception related research, and to the development of other direction-dependent surface structures for touch. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2015
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
22. The contributions of skin structural properties to the friction of human finger-pads.
- Author
-
Liu, X, Gad, D, Lu, Z, Lewis, R, Carré, MJ, and Matcher, SJ
- Abstract
This paper describes three series of tests that were designed to investigate how skin mechanical and structural properties, measured using a ‘Cutometer’ and optical coherence tomography, affect the frictional behaviour of human finger-pads. First, the skin mechanical properties across all fingers and the palm in participants’ dominant hands were assessed. Results showed that the distensibility of skin (total deformation in a suction test) is associated with stratum corneum thickness and that this in turn affects friction (thicker stratum corneum leads to higher friction), giving a link between distensibility and friction. Tape stripping to remove the superficial layer of the skin led to increased moisture (and/or electric charge on the skin surface) that led to higher friction. No accompanying changes were seen in structural properties, so it was concluded that moisture was the main cause of the adhesion increase. More work is required to isolate moisture and possible changes in electric charge using alternative measurement techniques. When rubbing with sand-paper, the stratum corneum thinned considerably and friction reduced. Moisture was ruled out as a cause of friction changes in this instance. Skin normal stiffness also did not change, but lateral stiffness changes have been seen in previous work when the stratum corneum thickness has been reduced, so this is likely to be the cause of the reduced friction. This will be investigated further in future work using dynamic optical coherence tomography measurements. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]
- Published
- 2015
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
23. Understanding the variation of friction coefficients of human skin as a function of skin hydration and interfacial water films.
- Author
-
Derler, S, Rossi, RM, and Rotaru, G-M
- Abstract
Human skin is characterised by a complex and highly variable friction behaviour. Although the variation of friction coefficients measured for skin depends on numerous parameters related to the skin itself, the surface in contact as well as contact conditions, water or sweat – either bound in the stratum corneum and manifest as skin hydration or in form of liquid films lubricating the interface – is the most important factor. Here, we analyse the variation of previous experimental data on the basis of the adhesion friction model and show how lower and upper bounds, i.e. envelope functions, can be derived for measured skin-friction coefficients. From these envelope functions, essential tribological parameters such as the interfacial shear strength and the real contact area of skin are estimated. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]
- Published
- 2015
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
24. Investigation of the effect of the normal load on the incidence of friction blisters in a skin-simulant model.
- Author
-
Chimata, GP and Schwartz, CJ
- Abstract
A laminar skin simulant was constructed to study the incidence of friction blisters. The skin simulant consists of a thin polyurethane top layer and textured gum foam rubber bottom layer adhered to an acrylic-backing plate to emulate the layered structure of the human skin. Friction blisters were produced on the skin simulant by using a dual-axis tribometer. The effect of the applied normal load on the number of cycles required to produce a blister was investigated. The skin simulant was also analyzed as an adhesive-bonded laminar composite to determine the relationship between the applied normal load and the number of cycles for blistering. The normal load and the number of cycles were found to be inversely related and vary by a power law function, as observed in previous work on human subjects in Naylor’s pioneering study. The results obtained from the experimental data and the fracture mechanics modeling of the skin simulant indicate the potential of elastomeric skin simulant in providing useful insight into blister mechanics and other tribological properties of skin. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]
- Published
- 2015
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
25. Relationship Between the Friction and Microscopic Contact Behavior of a Medical Compression Stocking at Different Strains.
- Author
-
Ke, W., Rotaru, G.-M., Hu, J., Ding, X., Rossi, R., and Derler, S.
- Subjects
- *
SURFACE structure , *FRICTION , *ELASTIC textiles , *SURFACE texture , *TENSILE strength , *SURFACE topography , *POLYURETHANES - Abstract
The contact and friction behavior of a medical compression stocking (MCS) under different strains was investigated in friction and compression experiments against a mechanical skin model. In addition, the 3D topography of the MCS surfaces was analyzed in order to study the relationship between macroscopic friction and microscopic surface properties. The load dependence of friction coefficients was found to be in accordance with the adhesion friction model. The surface structure of MCS samples was considerably changed when varying the strain state, while friction coefficients remained comparable, indicating real contact areas independent of strain on the microscopic level. The experimental findings could be confirmed and explained on the basis of the microscopic surface analyses, when interpreting the fabric surfaces to be composed of numerous individual round asperities obeying the Hertz contact model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2014
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
26. Skin Tribology
- Author
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Wang, Q. Jane, editor and Chung, Yip-Wah, editor
- Published
- 2013
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
27. Normalising tactile friction
- Author
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David Thomas Allan Matthews, E. van der Heide, D.A. Sergachev, and Surface Technology and Tribology
- Subjects
Mechanical Engineering ,Work (physics) ,UT-Hybrid-D ,Sample (statistics) ,02 engineering and technology ,Surfaces and Interfaces ,Function (mathematics) ,Texture (music) ,021001 nanoscience & nanotechnology ,Ridge (differential geometry) ,Surfaces, Coatings and Films ,body regions ,Tactile friction ,020303 mechanical engineering & transports ,0203 mechanical engineering ,Mechanics of Materials ,Statistics ,Range (statistics) ,Texture ,0210 nano-technology ,Contact area ,Set (psychology) ,Skin tribology ,Mathematics - Abstract
Finger pad friction varies significantly between individuals due to personal differences and environmental effects. For this reason, comparison of the absolute friction values becomes non-informative and is rarely reported in literature. This work investigates whether friction data can be normalised to correlate between individuals. A set of textured samples were tested by 10 volunteers in dry sliding conditions with a range of normal loads up to 4 N. A reference smooth sample was used for each participant to normalise the dataset. The proposed approach allows to eliminate one of the unknown parameters, e.g., finger pad ridge contact area function, and discuss the data with respect to other variables.
- Published
- 2021
28. The role of the skin microrelief in the contact behaviour of human skin: Contact between the human finger and regular surface textures.
- Author
-
van Kuilenburg, J., Masen, M.A., and van der Heide, E.
- Subjects
- *
CONTACT mechanics , *SURFACE texture , *SKIN , *TOUCH , *FRICTION , *MECHANICAL loads - Abstract
Abstract: The friction behaviour of the human fingerpad as a function of asperity geometry was investigated experimentally. Surface textures consisting of evenly distributed spherically tipped asperities were used for in vivo testing. Using analytical expressions, a multi-scale model was developed to explain the observed friction behaviour as a function of texture geometry, load and skin properties. Friction is found to increase with increasing tip radius. A minimum value for the coefficient of friction seems to exist as a function of asperity density. A maximum value for tip spacing exists above which the contact is not determined by the texture properties only. According to the model normal adhesion plays an important role in the observed friction behaviour. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]
- Published
- 2013
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
29. Friction between human skin and medical textiles for decubitus prevention.
- Author
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Rotaru, G.-M., Pille, D., Lehmeier, F.K., Stämpfli, R., Scheel-Sailer, A., Rossi, R.M., and Derler, S.
- Subjects
- *
SURFACE texture , *FRICTION , *SKIN , *MEDICAL textiles , *BEDSORES prevention , *TRIBOLOGY - Abstract
Abstract: Decubitus ulcers or pressure ulcers are a major health problem. This study investigated the possibility of using low-friction bed sheets with optimized moisture transport properties for the prevention of decubitus ulcers. The tribological behavior of a newly developed prototype in contact with human skin was investigated in vivo. For comparison conventional hospital bed sheets were also investigated. Friction measurements under dry and wet conditions on the inner forearm showed that conventional hospital bed sheets are not optimal; their friction was systematically higher by up to 50% when compared with the prototype. These results suggest that friction and shear stresses on the skin of patients and thus the risk of pressure ulcers could be reduced by improved hospital bed sheets. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]
- Published
- 2013
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
30. Feasibility of using optical coherence tomography to study the influence of skin structure on finger friction
- Author
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Liu, X., Lu, Z., Lewis, R., Carré, M.J., and Matcher, S.J.
- Subjects
- *
FEASIBILITY studies , *OPTICAL coherence tomography , *SKIN friction (Aerodynamics) , *DEFORMATIONS (Mechanics) , *HYDRATION , *PARAMETERS (Statistics) - Abstract
Abstract: This paper presents work using an in vivo technique, optical coherence tomography (OCT), to investigate the structure of human finger pad skin and the influences of some related parameters on skin friction, such as contact area, deformation and hydration. The experimental results show that there was no significant relationship between the thickness of the stratum corneum (SC) and the friction coefficient as well as the number of sweat ducts (SD). The real contact length was found to increase with increasing the applied normal force following the power law of . The study of hydration found an increasing linear relationship between the SC moisture and the friction coefficient (up to 72au). [Copyright &y& Elsevier]
- Published
- 2013
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
31. On surface structure and friction regulation in reptilian limbless locomotion.
- Author
-
Abdel-Aal, Hisham A,
- Subjects
SURFACE structure ,FRICTION ,PYGOPODIDAE ,LOCOMOTOR control ,LUBRICATION & lubricants ,SURFACE topography ,SNAKES ,BALL python - Abstract
Abstract: One way of controlling friction and associated energy losses is to engineer a deterministic structural pattern on the surface of the rubbing parts (i.e., texture engineering). Custom texturing enhances the quality of lubrication, reduces friction, and allows the use of lubricants of lower viscosity. To date, a standardized procedure to generate deterministic texture constructs is virtually non-existent. Many engineers, therefore, study natural species to explore surface construction and to probe the role that surface topography assumes in friction control. Snakes offer rich examples of surfaces where topological features allow the optimization and control of frictional behavior. In this paper, we investigate the frictional behavior of a constrictor type reptile, Python regius. The study employed a specially designed tribo-acoustic probe capable of measuring the coefficient of friction and detecting the acoustical behavior of the skin in vivo. The results confirm the anisotropy of the frictional response of snakeskin. The coefficient of friction depends on the direction of sliding: the value in forward motion is lower than that in the converse direction. Detailed analysis of the surface metrological feature reveals that tuning frictional response in snakes originates from the hierarchical nature of surface topology combined to the profile asymmetry of the surface micro-features, and the variation of the curvature of the contacting scales at different body regions. Such a combination affords the reptile the ability to optimize the frictional response. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]
- Published
- 2013
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
32. The friction measurement between finger skin and material surfaces.
- Author
-
Kim, Min-Seob, Kim, Il-Young, Park, Yon-Kyu, and Lee, Young-Ze
- Subjects
- *
FRICTION measurements , *SURFACES (Technology) , *REGRESSION analysis , *MECHANICAL loads , *MATERIAL plasticity , *HUMIDITY - Abstract
Abstract: The surfaces of materials differ in topography and compatibility with human skin. Those differences were distinguished by measuring the friction coefficients between a human finger and different types of surfaces. Sample groups used in these tests were glass, plastic, and fabric. In the case of fabric, the following materials were used: linen, canvas, felt, silk, velvet, and cotton. Experiments were conducted using a specially-designed apparatus under constant temperature and relative humidity. Two factors were identified using the finger friction measurements. First was the friction level and second was the variance in friction. In Particular, it was found that different surfaces show significantly different variance in their friction coefficients. Fitting parameters from a linear regression of the relationship between friction coefficient and normal load were used to map materials' responses. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]
- Published
- 2013
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
33. Medical textiles with low friction for decubitus prevention
- Author
-
Derler, S., Rao, A., Ballistreri, P., Huber, R., Scheel-Sailer, A., and Rossi, R.M.
- Subjects
- *
MEDICAL textiles , *FRICTION , *BEDSORES prevention , *SYNTHETIC fibers , *PROTOTYPES , *PRESSURE , *WATER , *SHEAR (Mechanics) - Abstract
Abstract: Decubitus or pressure ulcers in immobile patients are associated with prolonged pressure, shear and friction forces acting on the skin and the soft tissue underneath. We investigated the friction behaviour of hospital bed sheets in comparison with prototypes of low friction textiles in order to assess their potential for decubitus prevention. A specific textile composed of synthetic fibres showed a factor of three lower friction than normal hospital bed sheets under both dry and wet conditions. By absorbing and distributing interfacial water within the textile structure, the prototype additionally exhibited beneficial water transport properties. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]
- Published
- 2012
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
34. Understanding the Friction Mechanisms Between the Human Finger and Flat Contacting Surfaces in Moist Conditions.
- Author
-
Tomlinson, S. E., Lewis, R., Liu, X., Texier, C., and Carré, M. J.
- Abstract
Human hands sweat in different circumstances and the presence of sweat can alter the friction between the hand and contacting surface. It is, therefore, important to understand how hand moisture varies between people, during different activities and the effect of this on friction. In this study, a survey of fingertip moisture was done. Friction tests were then carried out to investigate the effect of moisture. Moisture was added to the surface of the finger, the finger was soaked in water, and water was added to the counter-surface; the friction of the contact was then measured. It was found that the friction increased, up until a certain level of moisture and then decreased. The increase in friction has previously been explained by viscous shearing, water absorption and capillary adhesion. The results from the experiments enabled the mechanisms to be investigated analytically. This study found that water absorption is the principle mechanism responsible for the increase in friction, followed by capillary adhesion, although it was not conclusively proved that this contributes significantly. Both these mechanisms increase friction by increasing the area of contact and therefore adhesion. Viscous shearing in the liquid bridges has negligible effect. There are, however, many limitations in the modelling that need further exploration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2011
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
35. Friction of human skin against smooth and rough glass as a function of the contact pressure
- Author
-
Derler, S., Gerhardt, L.-C., Lenz, A., Bertaux, E., and Hadad, M.
- Subjects
- *
SKIN , *SLIDING friction , *CONTACT mechanics , *PRESSURE , *HYDRODYNAMICS , *TRIBOLOGY , *LUBRICATION & lubricants , *ADHESION , *GLASS - Abstract
Abstract: The friction behaviour of human skin was studied by combining friction measurements using a tri-axial force plate with skin contact area measurements using a pressure sensitive film. Four subjects carried out friction measurement series, in which they rubbed the index finger pad and the edge of the hand against a smooth and a rough glass surface under dry and wet conditions. The normal loads were varied up to values of 50N, leading to skin contact pressures of up to 120kPa. The analysis of the pressure dependence of friction coefficients of skin for contrasting sliding conditions allowed to determine the involved friction mechanisms on the basis of theoretical concepts for the friction of elastomers. Adhesion was found to be involved in all investigated cases of friction between skin and glass. If adhesion mechanisms predominated (skin against smooth glass in the dry condition and skin against rough glass in the wet condition), the friction coefficients were generally high (typically >1) and decreased with increasing contact pressure according to power laws with typical exponents between −0.5 and −0.2. Contributions to the friction coefficient due to viscoelastic skin deformations were estimated to be relatively small (<0.2). In those cases where the deformation component of friction played an important role in connection with adhesion (skin against rough glass in the dry condition), the friction coefficients of skin were typically around 0.5 and their pressure dependence showed weak trends characterised by exponents ranging from −0.1 to +0.2. If hydrodynamic lubrication came into play (skin sliding on smooth glass in the wet condition), the friction coefficients were strongly reduced compared to dry friction (<1), and their decrease with increasing contact pressures was characterised by exponents of <−0.7. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]
- Published
- 2009
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
36. Investigation of skin tribology and its effects on the tactile attributes of polymer fabrics
- Author
-
Darden, Matthew A. and Schwartz, Christian J.
- Subjects
- *
SKIN injuries , *BIOMECHANICS , *FRICTION , *SENSES , *SYNTHETIC textiles , *POLYMERS , *PRODUCT design , *QUANTITATIVE research - Abstract
Abstract: The most fundamental interaction between a user and a product is physical touch. In fact, a significant amount of the perceived value of a product results from the initial touch experience by the potential customer, whether the product is an automobile interior or a portable music player. Therefore, the ability to engineer a product''s tactile character to produce favorable sensory perceptions has the potential to revolutionize product design. Another major consideration is the potential for products to produce friction-induced injuries to skin such as blistering. Progress in this field has been hindered by the difficulties in drawing correlations between human sensory outcomes (e.g. softness, smoothness, leather-like feel) and quantitative physical properties (e.g. friction coefficient, elastic modulus). In this paper, a framework is proposed to address this issue with regards to polymer fabrics, which are used everywhere from clothing to protective wound-care products, and results are reported. Human evaluators were used in a modified Quantitative Descriptive Analysis (QDA) approach in order to identify four specific tactile attributes of fabric materials—sensible texture, abrasiveness, slipperiness, and fuzziness. The friction coefficients of the same fabrics against skin were measured by employing a three-axis dynamometer. The results were then correlated to sensory attributes by means of standard statistical methods. It was concluded from this work that human evaluators can score various fabrics along the above four tactile descriptors with significant statistical repeatability if “high” and “low” benchmark reference fabrics are made available during the evaluation. It was also observed that friction between fabric and skin is heavily dependent on both material type and fiber geometry, but that the impact of friction coefficient on tactility is still unclear. However, the methods presented in the paper may be used to further identify key fabric properties that are responsible for tactility. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]
- Published
- 2009
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
37. Texture design for light touch perception
- Author
-
David Thomas Allan Matthews, Xiangqiong Zeng, E. Rodriguez Vidal, E. van der Heide, Amaya Igartua, J. Contreras Fortes, and Sheng Zhang
- Subjects
Materials science ,lcsh:Biotechnology ,media_common.quotation_subject ,Biomedical Engineering ,Biophysics ,Light touch ,02 engineering and technology ,Surface finish ,Skin friction ,Texture design ,lcsh:Biochemistry ,Biomaterials ,0203 mechanical engineering ,lcsh:TP248.13-248.65 ,Perception ,Torque sensor ,lcsh:QD415-436 ,Computer vision ,Surface texture ,Groove (music) ,media_common ,Normal force ,business.industry ,Mechanical Engineering ,Tactile perception ,021001 nanoscience & nanotechnology ,Surfaces, Coatings and Films ,020303 mechanical engineering & transports ,Artificial intelligence ,0210 nano-technology ,Contact area ,business ,Skin tribology - Abstract
This study focused on active light touch with predefined textures specially-designed for tactile perception. The counter-body material is stainless steel sheet. Three geometric structures (grid, crater and groove) were fabricated by pulsed laser surface texturing. A total number of twenty volunteers participated in the research which contains two parts: perception tests and skin friction measurements. The perception tests focused mainly on the participants׳ perceptual attributes: perceived roughness and perceived stickiness. For the skin friction measurements, a multi-axis force/torque transducer was used to measure the normal force and friction force between skin and counter-surface along with the fingertip position. The results of the predefined textures showed the ability to reduce skin friction due to the reduction of contact area. Moreover, the participants׳ perceptual attributes were greatly influenced by the predefined micro-structures in the light touch regime.
- Published
- 2017
38. Normalising tactile friction.
- Author
-
Sergachev, D.A., Matthews, D.T.A., and van der Heide, E.
- Subjects
- *
FRICTION , *FRICTION measurements , *ABSOLUTE value , *SLIDING friction - Abstract
Finger pad friction varies significantly between individuals due to personal differences and environmental effects. For this reason, comparison of the absolute friction values becomes non-informative and is rarely reported in literature. This work investigates whether friction data can be normalised to correlate between individuals. A set of textured samples were tested by 10 volunteers in dry sliding conditions with a range of normal loads up to 4 N. A reference smooth sample was used for each participant to normalise the dataset. The proposed approach allows to eliminate one of the unknown parameters, e.g., finger pad ridge contact area function, and discuss the data with respect to other variables. • Friction measurements from 10 volunteers, 4 samples and 9 normal loads were analysed to propose a normalisation method. • Normalisation reduces one of the personal variables and allows friction comparison between individuals. • Friction measurements normalised by a reference represent a change of contact area fraction with normal load. • Volunteers showed similar fractions of real contact area despite differences in skin properties and friction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2021
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
39. Investigation of human perception of tactile graphics and its dependence on fundamental friction mechanisms.
- Author
-
Renganathan, Prasanth and Schwartz, Christian J.
- Subjects
- *
TOUCH , *BRAILLE , *FINGERS , *FORM perception , *FRICTION , *GEOGRAPHIC boundaries , *FRICTION measurements , *VISION disorders - Abstract
Accurate depiction of visual information presents a formidable obstacle to the inclusion of people with visual impairments in standardized educational assessment. This challenge is often addressed by using tactile graphics, such as the use of a collection of tactile patterns representing various zones similar to the use of colors to represent political boundaries on a visual map. This study investigated friction mechanisms involved during fingertip exploration of tactile graphics, as well as the role that friction played in forming perceptions. Perception experiments were run using four texture types published by the Braille Authority of North America (BANA): two parallel-ridge textures of different ridge widths and spacings, and two ordered-dot textures of different dot spacings. To minimize tactile confusion, BANA guidelines prohibit the use of similar textures adjacent to each other. In this study, texture pairs were printed adjacent to each other on thermally activated ('swell touch') tactile paper. Sighted human subjects participated in a blinded task of determining if the two textures in the pair were the same or different. Friction measurements of the fingertip exploration of the texture pairs was recorded using a dynamometer in a range of normal loads from 0.4 to 0.8 N. A generalized linear model (GLM) with a logistic link function was used to predict the influence of texture pair and participant on the likelihood of perceiving each texture pair as the same or different. Results showed that the particular texture pair had a strong correlation to the ability of participants to discern between textures. These quantitative results support the BANA guidelines. The friction data showed that there was not a significant amount of difference among the coefficients of friction of various textures, such that COF was not a strong predictor of perceptive ability. However, there was some evidence that penetration of the fingertip between raised texture elements, and interlocking with these elements, allowed for dissimilar dot patterns to be better discerned than dissimilar ridge patterns. The results indicate that there are other aspects, possibly still tribological in nature, that govern tactile perception when exploring tactile graphics. These phenomena may include such things as finger deformation and vibrational response produced during contact with individual texture elements. • Psychophysical studies were done on sighted people to evaluate the tactile discrimination of tactile graphic textures. • The probability of discerning textures was well predicted using the General Linear Model with a logistic link function. • Sequence order effects in similar ridged textures appeared to be related to finger penetration into the textures. • The ability to discern between these texture types did not appear to be strongly influenced by coefficient of friction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2021
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
40. A new water absorbable mechanical Epidermal skin equivalent: The combination of hydrophobic PDMS and hydrophilic PVA hydrogel
- Author
-
P. Gonzalez-Rodriguez, Xiangqiong Zeng, M. Morales-Hurtado, J.E. ten Elshof, E. van der Heide, Inorganic Materials Science, Faculty of Engineering Technology, and Faculty of Science and Technology
- Subjects
Materials science ,Surface Properties ,Biomedical Engineering ,Hydration ,Young's modulus ,Polydimethyl Siloxane ,IR-96668 ,Polyvinyl alcohol ,Viscoelasticity ,Biomaterials ,Shear modulus ,Contact angle ,chemistry.chemical_compound ,symbols.namesake ,Biomimetic Materials ,Elastic Modulus ,Indentation ,Young modulus ,Humans ,Skin equivalent ,Dimethylpolysiloxanes ,METIS-310459 ,Composite material ,Polyvinyl Alcohol hydrogel ,Elastic modulus ,Viscosity ,Water ,Absorption, Physicochemical ,chemistry ,Mechanics of Materials ,Polyvinyl Alcohol ,symbols ,Epidermis ,Skin tribology ,Hydrophobic and Hydrophilic Interactions - Abstract
Research on human skin interactions with healthcare and lifestyle products is a topic continuously attracting scientific studies over the past years. It is possible to evaluate skin mechanical properties based on human or animal experimentation, yet in addition to possible ethical issues, these samples are hard to obtain, expensive and give rise to highly variable results. Therefore, the design of a skin equivalent is essential. This paper describes the design and characterization of a new Epidermal Skin Equivalent (ESE). The material resembles the properties of epidermis and is a first approach to mimic the mechanical properties of the human skin structure, variable with the length scale. The ESE is based on a mixture of Polydimethyl Siloxane (PDMS) and Polyvinyl Alcohol (PVA) hydrogel cross-linked with Glutaraldehyde (GA). It was chemically characterized by XPS and FTIR measurements and its cross section was observed by macroscopy and cryoSEM. Confocal Microscope analysis on the surface of the ESE showed an arithmetic roughness (Ra) between 14-16 μm and contact angle (CA) values between 50-60°, both of which are close to the values of in vivo human skins reported in the literature. The Equilibrium Water Content (ECW) was around 33.8% and Thermo Gravimetric Analysis (TGA) confirmed the composition of the ESE samples. Moreover, the mechanical performance was determined by indentation tests and Dynamo Thermo Mechanical Analysis (DTMA) shear measurements. The indentation results were in good agreement with that of the target epidermis reported in the literature with an elastic modulus between 0.1-1.5 MPa and it showed dependency on the water content. According to the DTMA measurements, the ESE exhibits a viscoelastic behavior, with a shear modulus between 1-2.5MPa variable with temperature, frequency and the hydration of the samples. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. Chemicals/CAS: dimeticone, 32028-95-8, 68248-27-1, 9004-73-3, 9006-65-9; polyvinyl alcohol, 37380-95-3, 9002-89-5; water, 7732-18-5; baysilon; Dimethylpolysiloxanes; Polyvinyl Alcohol; polyvinyl alcohol hydrogel; Water
- Published
- 2015
41. An Empirical Approach for the Determination of Skin Elasticity: Finger pad Friction against Textured Surfaces
- Author
-
David Thomas Allan Matthews, E. van der Heide, and D.A. Sergachev
- Subjects
Materials science ,Young's modulus ,Modulus ,02 engineering and technology ,Surface finish ,Silicone rubber ,Biomaterials ,Tactile friction ,symbols.namesake ,chemistry.chemical_compound ,0203 mechanical engineering ,Dynamical friction ,Composite material ,Surface texture ,Elastic modulus ,021001 nanoscience & nanotechnology ,22/4 OA procedure ,Surfaces, Coatings and Films ,020303 mechanical engineering & transports ,chemistry ,symbols ,0210 nano-technology ,Contact area ,Skin tribology ,Asperity (materials science) - Abstract
Surface topography significantly influences tactile friction and perception. While friction forces can be reduced by surface texturing, selection of pattern dimensions is challenging due to the highly variable elastic modulus of the skin. This work proposes an empirical approach for the evaluation of the skin elasticity through surface transition from asperity to full contact state. To highlight the contact transition, two textures with evenly distributed identical micro asperities, but varying density, were moulded with several grades of silicone rubber. Dynamic friction coefficient measurements were performed during finger pad sliding against the textured samples with a range of normal loads up to 5 N. A combination of analytical and numerical contact models is used to explain the observed friction behaviour, estimate the development of contact area and calculate the effective elastic modulus of the skin at the micro-scale. Low density textures clearly indicate the transition to the full contact state, which is reflected in friction coefficient development, while high density textures remain in an asperity contact state, with significantly lower friction values. The effective Young's modulus is hereby estimated in the range of 0.2–0.5 MPa. Observed frictional behaviour is explained by the change in the apparent and real contact areas. The presented approach allows to study the influence of individual surface parameters on effective skin elastic modulus, which is essential for the development of functional surfaces with improved tactile perception.
- Published
- 2019
42. The role of the skin microrelief in the contact behaviour of human skin: Contact between the human finger and regular surface textures
- Author
-
E. van der Heide, J. van Kuilenburg, Masen, and Faculty of Engineering Technology
- Subjects
Surface (mathematics) ,Materials science ,Friction ,High Tech Systems & Materials ,Human skin ,IR-85131 ,Surface textures ,Forensic engineering ,Texture (crystalline) ,Composite material ,Coefficient of friction ,Materials ,TS - Technical Sciences ,Industrial Innovation ,Analytical expressions ,MPC - Materials Performance Centre ,Mechanical Engineering ,Mechatronics, Mechanics & Materials ,Surfaces and Interfaces ,Adhesion ,Radius ,Surfaces, Coatings and Films ,Mechanics of Materials ,Fingerpad ,Skin tribology ,METIS-294695 ,Asperity (materials science) - Abstract
The friction behaviour of the human fingerpad as a function of asperity geometry was investigated experimentally. Surface textures consisting of evenly distributed spherically tipped asperities were used for in vivo testing. Using analytical expressions, a multi-scale model was developed to explain the observed friction behaviour as a function of texture geometry, load and skin properties. Friction is found to increase with increasing tip radius. A minimum value for the coefficient of friction seems to exist as a function of asperity density. A maximum value for tip spacing exists above which the contact is not determined by the texture properties only. According to the model normal adhesion plays an important role in the observed friction behaviour. © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
- Published
- 2013
43. A contact mechanics interpretation of the duplex theory of tactile texture perception
- Author
-
Ramona Fagiani and Marco Barbieri
- Subjects
Duplex tactile perception ,Induced vibration ,Mechanoreceptors ,Skin tribology ,Surface texture ,Mechanical Engineering ,Mechanics of Materials ,Surfaces, Coatings and Films ,Surfaces and Interfaces ,Engineering drawing ,Engineering ,genetic structures ,media_common.quotation_subject ,Acoustics ,Duplex (telecommunications) ,02 engineering and technology ,Surface finish ,Contact force ,Coatings and Films ,0203 mechanical engineering ,Perception ,media_common ,business.industry ,Duplex perception ,Tactile perception ,021001 nanoscience & nanotechnology ,Vibration ,Surfaces ,020303 mechanical engineering & transports ,Contact mechanics ,0210 nano-technology ,business - Abstract
The tactile perception of a surface texture originates from scanning a finger on the surface. This kind of sliding contact activates the mechanoreceptors located into the skin, allowing the brain to identify the object and to perceive information about the scanned surface. Perception is collected by mechanoreceptors either by sensing pressure or by sensing vibration: the first mechanism is typical of large spaced surface textures, while the second is necessary to perceive finer textures. These different behaviors are well known in the literature as the duplex perception mechanism. In the present paper a numerical model describing finger-surface scanning is introduced in order to investigate the relationship between contact induced vibrations and scanning conditions. The model has been validated by experimental comparisons in a previous work. The perception model is used to develop a parametric analysis of the vibration induced from the finger-surface scanning as a function of surface geometry, scanning speed and contact force. The proposed parametric analysis points out the minimum number of parameters needed to describe the tactile perception of a periodic texture, and it shows the tribological reasons for which duplex perception mechanism is an effective biological evolution towards optimal tactile perception.
- Published
- 2016
44. A new water absorbable mechanical Epidermal skin equivalent: the combination of hydrophobic PDMS and hydrophilic PVA hydrogel
- Subjects
Surface Properties ,Viscosity ,Hydration ,Water ,Polydimethyl Siloxane ,Absorption ,Physicochemical ,Biomimetic Materials ,Elastic Modulus ,Polyvinyl Alcohol ,Young modulus ,Humans ,Dimethylpolysiloxanes ,Epidermis ,Polyvinyl Alcohol hydrogel ,Skin tribology ,Hydrophobic and Hydrophilic Interactions ,Skin equivalent - Abstract
Research on human skin interactions with healthcare and lifestyle products is a topic continuously attracting scientific studies over the past years. It is possible to evaluate skin mechanical properties based on human or animal experimentation, yet in addition to possible ethical issues, these samples are hard to obtain, expensive and give rise to highly variable results. Therefore, the design of a skin equivalent is essential. This paper describes the design and characterization of a new Epidermal Skin Equivalent (ESE). The material resembles the properties of epidermis and is a first approach to mimic the mechanical properties of the human skin structure, variable with the length scale. The ESE is based on a mixture of Polydimethyl Siloxane (PDMS) and Polyvinyl Alcohol (PVA) hydrogel cross-linked with Glutaraldehyde (GA). It was chemically characterized by XPS and FTIR measurements and its cross section was observed by macroscopy and cryoSEM. Confocal Microscope analysis on the surface of the ESE showed an arithmetic roughness (Ra) between 14-16 μm and contact angle (CA) values between 50-60°, both of which are close to the values of in vivo human skins reported in the literature. The Equilibrium Water Content (ECW) was around 33.8% and Thermo Gravimetric Analysis (TGA) confirmed the composition of the ESE samples. Moreover, the mechanical performance was determined by indentation tests and Dynamo Thermo Mechanical Analysis (DTMA) shear measurements. The indentation results were in good agreement with that of the target epidermis reported in the literature with an elastic modulus between 0.1-1.5 MPa and it showed dependency on the water content. According to the DTMA measurements, the ESE exhibits a viscoelastic behavior, with a shear modulus between 1-2.5MPa variable with temperature, frequency and the hydration of the samples. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. Chemicals/CAS: dimeticone, 32028-95-8, 68248-27-1, 9004-73-3, 9006-65-9; polyvinyl alcohol, 37380-95-3, 9002-89-5; water, 7732-18-5; baysilon; Dimethylpolysiloxanes; Polyvinyl Alcohol; polyvinyl alcohol hydrogel; Water
- Published
- 2015
45. The role of the sliding direction against a grooved channel texture on tool steel: An experimental study on tactile friction
- Subjects
Tools ,Tactile friction ,TS - Technical Sciences ,Industrial Innovation ,Sliding direction ,Tool steel ,MIP - Materials for Integrated Products ,Materials and Structures ,Surface texture ,Mechanics ,Materials ,Skin tribology - Abstract
To control tactile friction, that is the friction between fingertip and counter-body, the role of surface texture is required to be unveiled and defined. In this research, an experimental approach is used based on measuring tactile friction for directional texture (grooved channel) with varying depths. For a reference surface, in this current case a polished surface from the same tool steel is compared. The experimental results are analyzed to explain the observed skin friction behavior as a function of surface texture parameters, sliding direction and applied normal load. Sliding parallel to the groove length shows greater values in COF than sliding perpendicular to the groove direction. Furthermore, parallel sliding reveals a higher dependency of COF on the depth of the grooved channel texture than perpendicular sliding. Application of the two term friction model suggests that the adhesion component of friction has greater impact on parallel than perpendicular sliding direction. According to the observations, grooved channels are well suited to control skin friction in direction dependent sliding, for moderately loaded contact situations. This experimental research contributes to the haptic perception related research, and to the development of other direction-dependent surface structures for touch.
- Published
- 2015
46. The role of the sliding direction against a grooved channel texture on tool steel: An experimental study on tactile friction
- Author
-
Sheng Zhang, Xiangqiong Zeng, Marina Morales Hurtado, Emile van der Heide, Adriana Rodriguez Urribarri, and Faculty of Engineering Technology
- Subjects
Engineering drawing ,Materials science ,Tool steel ,Surface finish ,engineering.material ,Tools ,Tactile friction ,Materials Science(all) ,Parasitic drag ,Modelling and Simulation ,Sliding direction ,Perpendicular ,Mechanics, Materials and Structures ,MIP - Materials for Integrated Products ,General Materials Science ,Texture (crystalline) ,Composite material ,Surface texture ,Materials ,Groove (music) ,TS - Technical Sciences ,Industrial Innovation ,Mechanical Engineering ,Applied Mathematics ,Condensed Matter Physics ,Mechanics of Materials ,Modeling and Simulation ,Reference surface ,engineering ,Haptic perception ,Skin tribology - Abstract
To control tactile friction, that is the friction between fingertip and counter-body, the role of surface texture is required to be unveiled and defined. In this research, an experimental approach is used based on measuring tactile friction for directional texture (grooved channel) with varying depths. For a reference surface, in this current case a polished surface from the same tool steel is compared. The experimental results are analyzed to explain the observed skin friction behavior as a function of surface texture parameters, sliding direction and applied normal load. Sliding parallel to the groove length shows greater values in COF than sliding perpendicular to the groove direction. Furthermore, parallel sliding reveals a higher dependency of COF on the depth of the grooved channel texture than perpendicular sliding. Application of the two term friction model suggests that the adhesion component of friction has greater impact on parallel than perpendicular sliding direction. According to the observations, grooved channels are well suited to control skin friction in direction dependent sliding, for moderately loaded contact situations. This experimental research contributes to the haptic perception related research, and to the development of other direction-dependent surface structures for touch.
- Published
- 2015
47. Design of a tribometer for investigating tactile perception
- Author
-
Francesco Massi, Eric Vittecoq, Aurélien Saulot, Yves Berthier, Eric Chatelet, DIMA, Dipartimento di Ingegneria Meccanica e Aerospaziale (DIMA), Università degli Studi di Roma 'La Sapienza' = Sapienza University [Rome]-Università degli Studi di Roma 'La Sapienza' = Sapienza University [Rome], HES (HES), HES, Laboratoire de Mécanique des Contacts et des Structures [Villeurbanne] (LaMCoS), Institut National des Sciences Appliquées de Lyon (INSA Lyon), Institut National des Sciences Appliquées (INSA)-Université de Lyon-Institut National des Sciences Appliquées (INSA)-Université de Lyon-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Tribologie et Mécanique des Interfaces (TMI), Institut National des Sciences Appliquées (INSA)-Université de Lyon-Institut National des Sciences Appliquées (INSA)-Université de Lyon-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Institut National des Sciences Appliquées de Lyon (INSA Lyon), Université de Lyon-Institut National des Sciences Appliquées (INSA)-Université de Lyon-Institut National des Sciences Appliquées (INSA)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), and Université de Lyon-Institut National des Sciences Appliquées (INSA)-Université de Lyon-Institut National des Sciences Appliquées (INSA)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Institut National des Sciences Appliquées de Lyon (INSA Lyon)
- Subjects
Surface (mathematics) ,Engineering ,Acoustics ,tribometer ,Kinematics ,[PHYS.MECA.STRU]Physics [physics]/Mechanics [physics]/Structural mechanics [physics.class-ph] ,skin tribology ,tactile perception ,Computer vision ,[PHYS.MECA.VIBR]Physics [physics]/Mechanics [physics]/Vibrations [physics.class-ph] ,integumentary system ,business.industry ,Mechanical Engineering ,[SPI.MECA.VIBR]Engineering Sciences [physics]/Mechanics [physics.med-ph]/Vibrations [physics.class-ph] ,Surfaces and Interfaces ,Tactile perception ,Surfaces, Coatings and Films ,Vibration ,Mechanism (engineering) ,Noise ,compliant systems ,Amplitude ,[SPI.MECA.STRU]Engineering Sciences [physics]/Mechanics [physics.med-ph]/Structural mechanics [physics.class-ph] ,friction-induced vibrations ,Artificial intelligence ,Friction-induced vibrations ,business ,Tribometer - Abstract
12 pages; International audience; The understanding of the tactile perception mechanism implies the reproduction and measurement of friction forces and vibrations induced by the contact between the skin of human fingers and object surfaces. When a finger moves to scan the surface of an object, it activates the receptors located under the skin allowing the brain to identify surfaces and information about their properties. The information concerning the object surface is affected by the forces and vibrations induced by the friction between the skin and the rubbed object. The vibrations propagate in the finger skin and are converted into electric impulses sent to the brain by the mechanoreceptors. Because of the low amplitude of the induced vibrations, it results quite hard to reproduce the tactile surface scanning and measuring it without affecting measurements by external noise coming from the experimental test-bench. In fact the reproduction of the sliding contact between two surfaces implies the relative motion between them, which is obtained by appropriate mechanisms having a more or less complicated kinematics and including several sliding surfaces (bearings, sliders, etc.). It results quite difficult to distinguish between the vibrations coming from the reproduced sliding and the parasitic noise coming from the other sliding contact pairs. This paper presents the design and validation of a tribometer, named TRIBOTOUCH, allowing for reproducing and measuring friction forces and friction induced vibrations that are basilar for a clear understanding of the mechanisms of the tactile sense.
- Published
- 2014
48. Surface topography and contact mechanics of dry and wet human skin
- Author
-
Bo N. J. Persson, Kirstin Dening, Stanislav N. Gorb, and Alexander Kovalev
- Subjects
Surface (mathematics) ,Materials science ,General Physics and Astronomy ,Nanotechnology ,Human skin ,lcsh:Chemical technology ,lcsh:Technology ,Full Research Paper ,skin tribology ,contact mechanics ,roughness power spectrum ,Shear stress ,Surface roughness ,General Materials Science ,lcsh:TP1-1185 ,Electrical and Electronic Engineering ,Composite material ,lcsh:Science ,Capillary bridges ,integumentary system ,lcsh:T ,lcsh:QC1-999 ,Shear (sheet metal) ,Nanoscience ,Contact mechanics ,interface fluid ,lcsh:Q ,ddc:620 ,Contact area ,lcsh:Physics - Abstract
The surface topography of the human wrist skin is studied by using optical and atomic force microscopy (AFM) methods. By using these techniques the surface roughness power spectrum is obtained. The Persson contact mechanics theory is used to calculate the contact area for different magnifications, for the dry and wet skin. The measured friction coefficient between a glass ball and dry and wet skin can be explained assuming that a frictional shear stress σf ≈ 13 MPa and σf ≈ 5 MPa, respectively, act in the area of real contact during sliding. These frictional shear stresses are typical for sliding on surfaces of elastic bodies. The big increase in friction, which has been observed for glass sliding on wet skin as the skin dries up, can be explained as result of the increase in the contact area arising from the attraction of capillary bridges. Finally, we demonstrated that the real contact area can be properly defined only when a combination of both AFM and optical methods is used for power spectrum calculation.
- Published
- 2014
49. The role of the skin microrelief in the contact behaviour of human skin: contact between the human finger and regular surface textures
- Subjects
TS - Technical Sciences ,Surface textures ,Industrial Innovation ,Friction ,MPC - Materials Performance Centre ,High Tech Systems & Materials ,Fingerpad ,Mechanics & Materials ,Materials ,Skin tribology ,Mechatronics - Abstract
The friction behaviour of the human fingerpad as a function of asperity geometry was investigated experimentally. Surface textures consisting of evenly distributed spherically tipped asperities were used for in vivo testing. Using analytical expressions, a multi-scale model was developed to explain the observed friction behaviour as a function of texture geometry, load and skin properties. Friction is found to increase with increasing tip radius. A minimum value for the coefficient of friction seems to exist as a function of asperity density. A maximum value for tip spacing exists above which the contact is not determined by the texture properties only. According to the model normal adhesion plays an important role in the observed friction behaviour. © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
- Published
- 2013
50. Tactile Perception - Role of Physical Properties
- Author
-
Skedung, Lisa
- Subjects
Piezoelectric Force Sensor ,Friction Coefficient ,Skin Friction ,Uncoated Paper ,Multidimensional Scaling ,Magnitude Estimation ,Thermal Conductivity ,Biotribology ,Surface Roughness ,Printing Paper ,Magazine Paper ,Finger Friction ,X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy ,Skin Tribology ,Soft Tribology ,Annan medicinsk grundvetenskap ,Paper Coarseness ,Coated Paper ,Psychophysics ,Tactile Perception ,Profilometry ,Other Basic Medicine ,Paper Friction - Abstract
The aim of this thesis is to interconnect human tactile perception with various physical properties of materials. Tactile perception necessitates contact and relative motion between the skin and the surfaces of interest. This implies that properties such as friction and surface roughness ought to be important physical properties for tactile sensing. In this work, a method to measure friction between human fingers and surfaces is presented. This method is believed to best represent friction in tactile perception. This study is focused on the tactile perception of printing papers. However, the methodology of finger friction measurements, as well as the methodology to link physical properties with human perception data, can be applied to almost whichever material or surfaces. This thesis is based on three articles. In Article I, one participant performed finger friction measurements, using a piezoelectric force sensor, on 21 printing papers of different paper grades and grammage (weight of the papers). Friction coefficients were calculated as the ratio of the frictional force and the normal force, shown to have a linear relationship. The values were recorded while stroking the index finger over the surface. The results show that measurements with the device can be used to discriminate a set of similar surfaces in terms of finger friction. When comparing the friction coefficients, the papers group according to paper surface treatment and an emerging trend is that the rougher (uncoated) papers have a lower friction coefficient than the smoother (coated) papers. In the latter case, this is interpreted in terms of a larger contact between the finger and paper surface. In addition, a decrease in friction coefficient is noted for all papers on repeated stroking, where the coated papers display a larger decrease. XPS (X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy) reveals that skin lipids are transferred from the finger to the paper surface, acting as a lubricant and hence decrease friction. Nevertheless, there is evidence that mechanical changes of the surface cannot be completely ruled out. The reproducibility of the finger friction measurements is elaborated in Article II, by using many participants on a selection of eight printing papers out of the 21. The trends in friction are the same; once again, the coated papers display the highest friction. There are notably large variations in the exact value of the friction coefficient, which are tentatively attributed to different skin hydration and stroking modes. These same participants also took part in a tactile study of perceived paper coarseness (“strävhet” in Swedish). The results reveal that the participants can distinguish a set of printing papers in terms of perceived coarseness. Not unexpectedly, surface roughness appears to be an important property related to perceived coarseness, where group data display that perceived coarseness increases with increasing surface roughness. Interestingly, friction also appears to be a discriminatory property for some subjects. A few participants showed opposite trends, which is evidence for that what is considered coarse is subjective and that different participants “weigh” the importance of the properties differently. This is a good example of a challenge when measuring one-dimensional perceptions in psychophysics. In Article III, a multidimensional approach was used to explore the tactile perception of printing papers. To do this, the participants scaled similarity among all possible pairs of the papers, and this similarity data are best presented by a three-dimensional space solution. This means that there are three underlying dimensions or properties that the participants use to discriminate the surface feel. Also, there is a distinct perceptual difference between the rougher (uncoated) and smoother (coated) papers. The surface roughness appears to be the dominant physical property when discriminating between a real rough paper and a smooth paper, whereas friction, thermal conductivity and grammage are more important when discriminating among the smooth coated papers.
- Published
- 2010
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