ABSTRACT

In recent decades, injury has begun to gain prominence as a public health and societal problem. Slipperiness and slip, trip, and fall (STF) injuries are among the greatest obstacles to reducing the injury burden. One of the biggest challenges in STF is defining and measuring slipperiness. After over half a century of serious research on what slipperiness is and how it can be measured, rapid progress has been made in the decade of the 90s.

Measuring Slipperiness: Human Locomotion and Surface Factors provides an overview of basic concepts and definitions of terms related to the 'measurement of slipperiness' from the onset of a foot slide to a gradual loss of balance and a fall. The book includes expert group perspectives on human-centered (biomechanical, locomotive, perceptual, and cognitive), and surface-centered (roughness, friction) aspects and approaches. It addresses the injury burden of slipperiness, globally reviews existing slipmeters, and summarizes areas of consensus in the field of slipperiness measurement.

Perhaps the most comprehensive treatment of the subject ever compiled, the book contains contributions from North America, Europe, Asia, and Oceania including the National Laboratories of Finland, France, the U.K., and the U.S. A valuable, state-of-the-art textbook, it provides students with a useful starting point for understanding the many aspects of STF.

Measurement of Slipperiness: Fundamental Concepts and Definitions. Occupational Slip, Trip, Fall-Related Injuries - Can the Contribution of Slipperiness be Isolated? Biomechanics of Slips. Human-Centered Approaches in Slipperiness Measurement. The Role of Surface Roughness in the Measurement of Slipperiness. The Role of Friction in the Measurement of Slipperiness, Part 1: Friction Measurement and Definition of Test Conditions. The Role of Friction in the Measurement of Slipperiness, Part 2: Survey of Friction Measurement Devices. Measuring Slipperiness - Discussions on the State of the Art and Future Research.