Ulnar collateral ligament insufficiency has been shown to result in changes in contact pressure and contact area in the posteromedial elbow. This study used new digital technology to assess the effect of a complete ulnar collateral ligament tear on ulnohumeral contact area, contact pressure, and valgus laxity throughout the throwing motion. Nine elbow cadaveric specimens were tested at 90° and ...

Some fundamental questions concerning voice production remain unanswered despite numerous research approaches in various fields of voice science. It is widely believed that high intraglottal pressures may cause organic voice disorders – like vocal fold nodules or contact granulomas. This hypothesis seems reasonable but is difficult to prove given the challenges of pressure measurement and of es...

To understand the role of knuckle walking in hominin evolution, we need to better understand behavioral variation in knuckle walking, and specifically whether behavioral similarities between chimpanzees and gorillas are likely homologous. Differences in how the hands of gorillas and chimpanzees contact the ground while knuckle walking have been noted but not quantified: it is widely believed th...

A consistent mixed finite element method for solving two-dimensional contact problems is presented. Derivations of stiffness equations for contact elements are made from a perturbed Lagrangian variational principle. For a contact element, both the displacement and pressure fields are independently assumed. In order to achieve a consisent formulation, thus avoiding any numerical instability, the...

In this paper, we report on a 15-cantilever-type, force-sensormounted palatal plate capable of high sensitivity and accurate measurements of the palatolingual contact pressure and pattern that occur during consonant phonation. This paper also describes measurements of tongue force based on the results of the palatolingual contact pressure measurements that the 15-cantilever-type, force-sensor-m...

Certain problems in which a cooled rigid punch indents an elastic half-space have no steady state solution. A simple model is described in which it is shown that this paradox is avoided by the assumption of a thermal resistance varying inversely with contact pressure. A limiting case of this system retains linearity and introduces a state of "imperfect" contact in which contact pressure is negl...

In this article, we report on a novel diaphragm-type tactile pressure sensor that produces stepwise output currents depending on varying low contact pressures. When contact pressures are applied to the stepped output tactile sensor (SOTS), the sensor's suspended diaphragm makes contact with the substrate, which completes a circuit by connecting resistive current paths. Then the contact area, an...

A theory of contact angle hysteresis of a meniscus inside thin capillaries with smooth, homogeneous solid walls is developed in terms of surface forces (disjoining/conjoining pressure isotherm) using a quasi-equilibrium approach. The disjoining/conjoining pressure isotherm includes electrostatic, intermolecular, and structural components. The values of the static receding θr, advancing θa, and ...