title: Evaluation of thermal formation and air ventilation inside footwear during gait: The role of gait and fitting.
abstract: Comfort is an important concept in footwear design. The microclimate inside footwear contributes to the perception of thermal comfort. To investigate the effect of ventilation on microclimate formation inside footwear, experiments with subjects were conducted at four gait speeds with three different footwear sizes. Skin temperature, metabolism, and body mass were measured at approximately 25 °C and 50% relative humidity, with no solar radiation and a calm wind. The footwear occupancy and ventilation rate were also estimated, with the latter determined using the tracer gas method. The experimental results revealed that foot movement, metabolism, evaporation, radiation, convection, and ventilation were the main factors influencing the energy balance for temperature formation on the surface of the foot. The cooling effect of ventilation on the arch temperature was observed during gait. The significance of the amount of air space and ventilation on the improvement in the thermal comfort of footwear was clarified.
authors.affiliation: Department of Human Information Engineering, Okayama Prefectural University, 111 Kuboki, Soja, Okayama 719-1197, Japan. Electronic address: shimazaki@ss.oka-pu.ac.jp.
authors.forename: Yasuhiro
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Shimazaki
authors.affiliation: Department of Human Information Engineering, Okayama Prefectural University, 111 Kuboki, Soja, Okayama 719-1197, Japan. Electronic address: cd27048b@ss.oka-pu.ac.jp.
authors.forename: Toshiki
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Matsutani
authors.affiliation: College of Education and Human Sciences, Yokohama National University, 79-1 Tokiwadai, Hodogaya-ku, Yokohama 240-8501, Japan. Electronic address: satumoto@ynu.ac.jp.
authors.forename: Yayoi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Satsumoto
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001696:Biomechanical Phenomena; D005684:Gait; D064368:Healthy Volunteers; D006801:Humans; D006813:Humidity; D008297:Male; D009068:Movement / Q000502:physiology*; D012775:Shoes; D012881:Skin Temperature; D022722:Thermogenesis / Q000502:physiology*; D014691:Ventilation / Q000379:methods*; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Air behavior; Energy balance; Foot temperature