足と歩行の生体医工学

抄録

The rear sole of running shoes has 2 different functions of foot stability and shock absorption. To investigate how sole material layout in the rear sole affect the functions, we carried out experiments where running shoes with 3 separated sections of the rear sole and 3 gels with different degrees of hardness, employing 9 experienced runners. The experiments were done by changing the gel and its layout in the rear sole as well as running speed. Foot sole pressure, deformation of the rear sole and the orientation of the shoes relative to the tibia were measured. Consequently, shoes with the same gel in all sections exhibited that the rear-sole deformation was dependent on gel hardness and running speed, while the maximum pressure in the foot sole and maximum valgus angle of the shoes were independent. The comparison between shoes with a hard gel in the heel and lateral sections and a soft one in the medial section and those with the opposite gel layout exhibited that the deformation of the heel section was independent on the gel layout and running speed, while that of the lateral and medial sections were dependent solely on the gel layout.