Ramps or stairs: the choice using physiological and biomechanic criteria.
A study using eight subjects compared the O(2) consumption, heart rate and maximum knee joint angles when climbing stairs or ramps ranging in slope from 10 degrees to 30 degrees . It was found that the physiological cost of stairs is always less than a ramp of equal slope and that stairs with a 6 in riser were usually better than those with a 4 in riser. The values of the flexion at the knee joint were compared with a theoretical analysis by Shinno and found to differ considerably.
Corlett
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EN
Professor of Industrial Ergonomics, Department of Engineering Production, University of Birmingham, UK.
Hutcheson
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C
Delugan
M A
MA
Rogozenski
J
J