Shoulder pain and injury are highly prevalent among manual wheelchair users with spinal cord injury (SCI) [18]. The consequences of upper extremity (UE) pain are significant because manual wheelchair users rely on their arms for mobility and independence. Specific biomechanical parameters of wheelchair propulsion such as cadence, magnitude of force, and pattern of the hand during the no propuls...

Force generated by smooth muscle cells is believed to result from the interaction of actin and myosin filaments and is regulated through phosphorylation of the myosin regulatory light chain (LC(20)). The role of other cytoskeleton filaments, such as microtubules and intermediate filaments, in determining the mechanical output of smooth muscle is unclear. In cultured fibroblasts, microtubule dis...

viii

Force-distance curve measurements using atomic force microscope (AFM) has been widely used in a broad range of areas. However, currently force-curve measurements are hampered the its low speed of AFM. In this article, a novel inversion-based iterative control technique is proposed to dramatically increase the speed of force-curve measurements. Experimental results are presented to show that by ...

It has been shown that thigh-seat contact-surface influences performance of isometric push-force with upper-limbs. The push-force performance is higher when subjects are seated with partial ischio-femoral / seat contact than when they are seated with full ischio-femoral contact. This was ascribed to greater pelvis and spine mobility induced by the short thigh-seat contact-surface. The present s...

This study investigated the biodynamic response (BR) distributed at the palm of the hand subjected to a random vibration. Twelve male subjects were used in the experiment. Each subject applied three coupling actions (grip-only, push-only, and combined grip and push) on a simulated tool handle at three different levels (50, 75, and 100 N) of palm force. This study found that the hand-arm system ...

Push-ups are a common and practical exercise that is used to enhance fitness, including upper body strength or endurance. The kinetic characteristics of push-ups and its variations are yet to be quantified. Kinetic quantification is necessary to accurately evaluate the training load, and thus the nature of the training stimulus, for these exercise variations. This study assessed the peak vertic...