Discussion
The rapid hit of the heel in figures 1 and 2 explains why the stance time for force plate two is shorter in figure 3. The body overcompensates slightly for a step down and applies extra force to absorb the impact which generally makes the other leg step off the curb and onto the final force plate faster than normal. This is why stance time between the first plate and the last plate are similar.
. For the anterioposterior graph in figure 1, the foot strikes the plate creating a breaking force. As the step continues, the foot rolls to the toe where a propulsive force initiates. In figure 1, the propulsive force is least on the step plate. This is where the body is lowering itself to take a step down, so the propulsion is not needed as much.
In accordance to the data that was collected during this pilot study, future studies can be made using the basic concept of how a ground reaction forces act when stepping down a curb as compared to ground reaction forces for walking without a transition. It could be applied to other studies using healthy participants to determine if the results gathered here are viable. It could also be used as a control when experiments using disabled participants are involved. At the very least, it is a starting point for further experimentation.
LIMITATIONS:
. Five participants were not enough to predict results for the majority of a population.
. A reoccurring skew in collection happened when a participant would kick the edge of the curb as the step down was initiated.
. This experiment could have been conducted better. To duplicate it with fewer limitations would benefit future studies immensely.
. For the anterioposterior graph in figure 1, the foot strikes the plate creating a breaking force. As the step continues, the foot rolls to the toe where a propulsive force initiates. In figure 1, the propulsive force is least on the step plate. This is where the body is lowering itself to take a step down, so the propulsion is not needed as much.
In accordance to the data that was collected during this pilot study, future studies can be made using the basic concept of how a ground reaction forces act when stepping down a curb as compared to ground reaction forces for walking without a transition. It could be applied to other studies using healthy participants to determine if the results gathered here are viable. It could also be used as a control when experiments using disabled participants are involved. At the very least, it is a starting point for further experimentation.
LIMITATIONS:
. Five participants were not enough to predict results for the majority of a population.
. A reoccurring skew in collection happened when a participant would kick the edge of the curb as the step down was initiated.
. This experiment could have been conducted better. To duplicate it with fewer limitations would benefit future studies immensely.