Abstract
A kinetic analysis of the walking behavior of cows was made to obtain basic data for improving floor design in cattle barns. Locomotor patterns of cows, and three components of the forces applied by cow's feet, were studied on bared concrete and chaff covered concrete floors. The thickness of the chaff was 7 to 9cm. The displacement of the cow's center of gravity was estimated based on the total force applied by four feet.
The obtained results are summarized below:
1. The phase lag of stance phases and swing phases, and the basic patterns of the curves of the three force components applied by a cow's foot were almost the same in the two floor conditions.
2. There was an impulse at the contact of the foot to the floor on the bared concrete, while almost no impulse was measured on the chaff covered concrete.
3. The displacement of the cow's center of gravity in the vertical direction ranged from 1 to 3cm for both floor conditions. In the horizontal perpendicular direction, the amplitude was larger than that in the vertical direction. The amplitude ranged from 11 to 14cm on the bared concrete floor, and from 6 to 10cm on the chaff covered concrete floor. The difference seems to be because the horizontal perpendicular force on the bared concrete floor was slightly larger than that on the chaff covered concrete floor.
