Taking notice that Zori (leather sandal) representative of Japanese woman's footwears present not a few structural problems from the viewpoint of foot shape and walking function, we tried to solve these problems, leading to trial preparation of such an improved footwear as is adapted to the foot shape and walking function and has a good sense of putting-on. The results are mainly as follows.

  1) Mean values of area which was subtracted the Zori area from the foot area in each of 30 subjects revealed an areal protrusion of 15.4% of the mean foot area, indicating incompatibility between the foot and the Zori area.

  2) In view of a high correlation observed between the stature and the foot length, improved sandals were classified into M size and L size for 150-159.9cm and 160-166.9cm stature, respectively.

  3) Design of improved Zori was made as follows ; The width and the length of Zori were determined from mean values for foot shape. For positioning of Zori straps, fore strap was set between both bases of first and second toes, internal and external straps being set at the respective perpendicular locations of sphyrion and malleorus fibulare. Next, the curve of the Zori surface was made to bend along with the line of metatarsophalangeal joint and a camber of 15° was set from the above line to the tip of Zori.

  4) Comparative examination of the effect of leather sandals in terms of both brake and acceleration force of sagittal force of the ground reaction force between improved and ordinary Zori proved such a distinct increase in the above effect for the former Zori as was almost equivalent to that with bare foot, compared with a remarkable decrease for the latter Zori.

  In order to evaluate sauna suit experimentally, wear tests on two different clothing ensembles were conducted using thirteen healthy female students as subjects. The two different clothing ensembles were vinyl sauna suit and cotton undersuit ensemble (S+C) and cotton undersuit ensemble (C). The experiment was carried out under two thermal conditions : 24℃, 50%RH and 30℃, 60%RH in a climatic chamber. Total sweat rate (TSR) and sweat rate absorbed in clothing and remaining on skin (N-ESR) were measured in the experiment. Skin temperature, temperature and humidity inside clothing and subjective sensations were also determined throughout the experimental course.

  In the case of 30℃ wearing sauna suit showed larger sweat rates. But this resulted from much larger N-ESR and from smaller evaporated sweat rates (ESR). On the other hand, the TSR measured did not show any difference between the two clothing ensembles in the case of 24℃. However, the same patterns as observed at 30℃ were found in both the N-ESR and the ESR. Higher skin temperatures and temperatures and humidities inside clothing were measured in both thermal conditions wearing S+C. The findings seemed to be coincident with the behaviour on perspiration mentioned above.

  The present study was designed to verify the effects of foot warming wear on thermophysiological responses in cold ambient temperature (T_a) of 10℃. Tympanic (T_ty), rectal (T_re), skin (T_s) temperatures, heart rate (H. R.), thermal and comfort sensation were measured with 7 young female adults during 105 min in T_a of 10℃ with and without the foot warming wear. The face was fanned at 1m distance from the subjects with a wind speed of 2.4±0.3m•sec^-1 during last 5min of the experimental period. T_ty decreased by same extent in both clothing conditions, being accompained by the decrease of T_head and T_forehead, T_foot, was significantly higher in the foot warming wear. T_re resisted to fall more strongly in the foot warming wear in cold. These findings are discussed in terms of counter-current heat exchange system in head and arteriovenous anastomoses in foot.

  This report is based on a questionnaire conducted on 434 university students to find out their awareness and behavior toward traditional Japanese clothes.

  The main results are as follows :

  (1) The awareness and behavior toward traditional Japanese clothes are affected by wearing experience, liking for this kind of clothes, developing clothes rental business, sex, school year, and today's view on life.

  (2) Traditional Japanese clothes are one of the things which are conductive to the varied and pleasant clothing habits of young people.