The Effect of Rocker on Ice Friction in Short-Track Speed Skating

Short-track speed skates are prepared with rocker to improve cornering behavior. However, rocker also has a negative impact on ice friction. As there is currently no scientific theory for selecting optimal rocker profiles, skaters have to rely on personal experience. There is a lack of experimental data available in literature to validate...

The impact of skinsuit zigzag tape turbulators on speed skating performance

At the 1998 Nagano Winter Olympic Games, zigzag tape was introduced on the race suit lower legs and cap of speed skaters. Application of these zigzag devices on live skaters and cylinders in the wind tunnel showed large improvements in the aerodynamic drag. These wind-tunnel results were unfortunately not widely published, and the impact of...

Aerodynamics Analysis of Speed Skating Helmets: Investigation by CFD Simulations

In this work, we investigate the flow field around speed skating helmets and their associated aerodynamic drag by means of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations. An existing helmet frequently used in competition was taken as a baseline. Six additional helmet designs, as well as the bare-head configuration, were analysed. All the...

Validation of a 5-DoF intrumented speed skate: Towards a power meter for speed skating

Speed skates are the most important part of equipment of a speed skater, where weight, rocker and bend are just a few characteristics that are to a high degree individualized. This poses a challenge for any type of research in speed skating where forces have to be measured in a reliable manner. For this purpose, a 5 degrees of freedom (DoF)...

Analysis of in competition speed skating using IMU's

For feedback to be effective, we must first identify relevant performance indicators for speed skating. We instrumented the skating of 10 junior elite Dutch speed skaters with two inertial measurement units during two competition events. Contact time, stroke frequency and other parameters were derived from collected IMU data and related to...

Evaluating the use of a piezo-resistive pressure sensor system for performance feedback in long track speed skating

In the sport of long track speed skating, in recent years there has been an increasing desire for training tools which provide deeper technical insight of the skating movement to the athlete and coaches. In previous literature a variety of measurement systems have been presented; one such system included the instrumented klapskate developed at...

Design and verification of a simple 3D dynamic model of speed skating which mimics observed forces and motions

Advice about the optimal coordination pattern for an individual speed skater, could be addressed by simulation and optimization of a biomechanical speed skating model. But before getting to this optimization approach one needs a model that can reasonably match observed behaviour. Therefore, the objective of this study is to present a verified...

Micro-Activity Recognition using Wearables for Human Augmentation

Wearable devices have paved way for several context-aware applications in the field of health-care and sports to improve the well-being of users and their performance for human augmentation. During rehabilitation patients need accurate feedback that can empower and improve the speed of recovery. On the other hand competitive athletes need a...

Wireless instrumented klapskates for long-track speed skating

In the current project, we aim to provide speed skaters with real-time feedback on how to improve their skating performance within an individual stroke. The elite skaters and their coaches wish for a system that determines the mechanical power per stroke. The push-off force of the skater is a crucial variable in this power determination. In...

Getting the angles straight in speed skating: A validation study on an IMU filter design to measure the lean angle of the skate on the straights

To assist speed skaters in improving their skating performance, we would like to provide them with real time feedback on the orientation of the skate within a single stroke. While of course the forces generated by the skater on the ice determine the acceleration of the skater, the orientation of the skate determines in which direction this...

Giving the force direction: Analysis of speed skater push off forces with respect to an inertial coordinate system

Pushoff in speed skating requires an extensive motion strategy. During speed skating the skater continuously changes the lean and steering angle of the skate and therewith the direction of push-off, The forces in an inertial coordinate system can give insight into what amount of the push-off force is directed into the forward motion. In this...

The effects of different speed skating push-off techniques on the mechanical power, power distribution and energy expenditure

The technique of speed skating is unique in comparison to other sports that require human propulsion. Skaters generate a forward velocity by pushing off sideways. The ideal push-off technique is a trade-off: a more sideward directed push-off facilitates power production, but a more forward directed push-off increases the transfers rate of push...

Modelling and measuring 3D movements of a speed skater

Ice-skating is a rather special form of locomotion: the skater pushes sideward to propel himself forward; Insight in the details of this technique can help a speed skater improve his performance. The aim of this thesis is to develop a reliable and valid three-dimensional biomechanical model that simulates the motion of a speed skater, to gain...

AFThe Vibe of Skating: A Wearable Vibrotactile Speed Skating Coach

Speed skaters often mention a so called “good feeling”, this “good feeling” is the feeling as if the skating goes automatically. Most of the time this feeling rises when skating behind a better skater, but sometimes it also happens when skating alone. This is the feeling nearly every speed skater is after when skating then they say something...

A comparison of speed skating with normal and reduced ankle eversion

Purpose: Executing the sideward skating push-off requires a skater’s full attention and capabilities. Ankle eversion (AE) occurs during the push-off with skaters of low and high skill levels. Controlling AE requires high muscle force. AE adds unnecessary stress thus fatigue is a likely consequence. A purpose for AE in speed skating has not yet...