The purpose of the presented study was to compare the results of ASTM F 1614 Procedure A, Procedure B and the HIT method to quantify the shock attenuating properties of 29 commercially available running shoes. The performed tests revealed a different behavior of the three procedures regarding loading time (ASTM-A: material depending, $\overline{x}=16\mathrm{ms}\pm 2$; ASTM-B: 20 ms; HIT: 35 ms) and peak force (ASTM-A: material depending, $\overline{x}=992N\pm 92$; ASTM-B: material depending, $\overline{x}=985N\pm 110$; HIT: 1500 N). Because of viscoelastic material behavior those test methods resulted in different ratings regarding the shock absorbing abilities of the investigated samples.

Wearable inertial sensor systems are an upcoming tool for self-evaluation in sports, and can be used for swing analysis in golf. The aim of this work was to determine the validity and repeatability of an inertial sensor system attached to a player’s glove using a radar system as a reference. 20 subjects performed five full swings with each of three different clubs (wood, 7-iron, wedge). Clubhead speed was measured simultaneously by both sensor systems. Limits of Agreement were used to determine the accuracy and precision of the inertial sensor system. Results show that the inertial sensor system is quite accurate but with a lack of precision. Random error was quantified to approximately 12%. The measurement error was dependent on the club type and was weakly negatively correlated to the magnitude of clubhead speed.

This study investigated the effects of road surface (tarmac, gravel, cobblestones), load case (single passenger, two passengers), tire pressure (3.0, 4.0, 5.0 bar), and cycling velocity (10.0, 17.5, 25.0 km/h) on the whole-body vibration of children being transported in a bicycle trailer. Two types of passive dummies were utilized to mimic a baby and a toddler passenger in terms of weight and height. Road type and cycling velocity caused statistically significant change on the magnitude of whole-body vibrations. Overall, vibration total values were on the “uncomfortable” level of the vibration discomfort scale or even above. The major limitation of the study is the application of passive dummies, which might not represent the biodynamics of the target population.

Coupled bending-torsion vibrations at the shovel are a severe problem when running an alpine ski at high velocities on hard or icy slopes. Thus, a major goal for ski manufacturers is to dampen vibrations through a proper multi-material design and/or additional absorbers. The aim of this study was to examine the effectiveness of a particular vibration absorber on a commercial slalom ski through a series of laboratory tests as well as a subjective field evaluation. Therefore, two identical pairs of ski were used and the absorber was deactivated on one pair. Laboratory tests revealed reductions of 5% to 49% of bending vibrations on skis with activated absorber. Subjective evaluation by 6 subjects suggested minor differences in the mean of the evaluated criteria turnablity, edge grip, steering behavior and stability towards a better performance of the skis with activated absorber. Subjects were able to identify the absorber mode with a success rate of 61.1%.

The aim of this research was to study the effects of cycling gloves on hand-arm vibrations in realistic load scenarios. A test has been performed in the laboratory, a road bicycle handlebar was mounted to the hydraulic cylinder of a universal testing machine, and the bicycle was fixed on an indoor trainer. Tests were executed for three different hand sizes (small, medium, large), three different frequency ranges (15–25, 35–45, 85–95 Hz), with two different types of gloves (gel-padded; non-padded) and without gloves. The amplitudes and each frequency bands were obtained from a previous field test. Hand-arm vibrations were quantified by means of root mean square values of the frequency-weighted accelerations measured at the subject’s wrist joint. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed no significant effect of gloves in reducing vibration transmissibility.