Abstract
The purpose of this study was to investigate the affects of the angles of cross slopes on pushing torque and trunk motion during manual wheelchair propulsion. 7 subjects propelled a testing wheelchair on the three conditions: level ground, a cross slope of 2% and a cross slope of 7%. A three-dimensional motion capture system was used to analyze propulsion torque and angles of trunk. The uphill wheel had a braking torque on a 7% cross slope but not on a 2% cross slope and level ground. Lateral flexion angle significantly increased with inclining angles of cross slope. However, no differences across conditions existed for trunk flexion. The trunk flexion, however, had no differences across all the three conditions. An inhibition of trunk flexion would be a considerable factor to make wheelchair propulsion smooth on cross slopes.
