Abstract
Our. new rotary apparatus devised from the positional-table system (Lagetisch n/Grahe, 1925) is driven electrically and is operated on posture change combined with rotation. The apparatus is capable of accelerating or decelerating at fixed rate which is adjustable from 0.15° to 13° per second per second, and of revolving in either direction at any constant angular velocity up to 180° per second.
When the subject lies on supine position, the labyrinth is about 60 cm apart from the pivot and influenced under centrifugal force. We calculated its resultant acceleration of centrifugal force and angular acceleration, and made sure the direction of the forces during rotation for the purpose of application in practical use. We recorded the eye-nystagmus and the microvibration of body surface which are one of vestibular responses by use of a retinograph (5 channels), and made plans for the studies of otolith- and tonic neck-reflexes, positional nystagmus, and so on.
The principal points may be summed up as follows
(1) This apparatus is not in large scale as the lift or the rocket for the vestibular reserches.
(2) The subject's labyrinth is stimulated exactly by angular acceleration and centrifugal force.
(3) The microvibration of body surface changes as soon as rotation is put in motion at 0.3° or 0.5° per second per second.
(4) Even at the maximum velocity of 30° or 60° per second, the subject don't feel discomfort.
(5) The data may be examined objectively and synthetically.
