Inner Cushioning
The shoe must also have ample inner cushioning. This provides for proper shock absorption.
Arch Supports
Many athletes are concerned with arch support, but what most shoe companies advertise as arch supports (small foam pads) are not functional. Some shoe companies have included ‘orthotic type’ foam inserts in their running shoes. While these are better than foam supports, they still are a long way from being functional orthotics. There is simply no way to mass-produce an arch support that will fit everyone’s arch.
Choice of sports footwear
There are many different types of sports footwear, these are:
Running trainers
Tennis shoes
General trainers
Plimsoles
Golf shoes
Basketball trainers
Ski shoes
Skateboard shoes
Football boots
Ballet pumps
Cycling shoe
Running shoes
Aerobics trainers
Fitness trainers
Climbing shoes
Hiking boots
Comparison of sports shoes
There are many different types of footwear, each have different uses. Different parts of the shoe will have different properties depending on what they are used for (e.g. the function of the sole is partly to protect the foot, and will need to be strong, resistant to chemical corrosion and be able to absorb high impact). Some shoes need to be very hard wearing (e.g. climbing boots); others may need to be very flexible (e.g. the plimsole).
Results for Trainer Tests
The tennis shoe has moving cushioning, load distribution and a natural foot strike. It has long lasting durability in key wear areas. And is perfect for clay, hard and omni court surfaces. It is designed to have an excellent fit and comfort and including accommodation for orthotics.
The general trainer has comfort support and cushioning as well as stability, traction and durability.
The plimsole is only for indoor use. It has suitable grip for use indoors and is extremely flexible.
Material testing
Aim
To find the best material to make the shoelace for a pair of running shoes.
Safety Points
- Take care when handling the weights.
- Keep the restort stand away from the edge of the table.
Apparatus
Clamp
Weights (10g and 100g)
Rivet
Metal
Nylon
Cotton
Shoelace
Restort stand
Hook mast (small and large)
Ruler-50cm
Method
- Prepare the necessary apparatus.
- Tie the material onto the clamp boss.
- Make the material measures 30cm between the clamp and the boss.
- Get a 10g or 100g weight mass depending on the material.
- Start adding weights to the hook and keep measuring the material when adding each weight. Record the measurement.
- Find the total weight to break the material.
To make this a fair test all the materials were the same length and diameter. I repeated the experiment three times to find the average, this made my results more reliable. For some materials I had to use smaller weights because the material was not as strong as other materials.
Diagram
Hooke’s law states that the extension is proportional to the load.
Results
The copper wire did not break.
The nylon broke when I attached 500g. It took 5N to break this material.
I had to use the 10g weights because the material was weak. It took 6N to break this material.
This material was too thick to break.
This material took a long time to break because it too weak to use 100g weights so it took a lot of weights to break it. It took 13N to break this material.
Conclusion
The copper wire was too strong to break and would not be good to make shoelace with it because it would be too hard to tie a knot with it.
The nylon was too thin to use as a shoelace.
The wool was the weakest material tested; it would not be suitable to use as a shoelace.
The polythene was not a suitable material for a shoelace because it was a thin strip and was a bit hard to tie a knot with.
In my opinion nylon is the most appropriate material to use as a shoelace because it is strong and resilient.
Evaluation
The reliability of the shoelace experiment was not extremely accurate. All the materials had different thickness and some did not break.
To improve the results I would use materials that had the same thickness.
I had a few problems in this experiment. One of the materials was to short to tie a knot so I had to find a different sample of the same material.
When I plotted my results on the graph the extension was not proportional to the load, this was due to human error.
Similarities and differences in schools and industry
Differences
In industry:
A variety of weights
Many materials
Vast amount of time
Research
Similarities
Teamwork
Safety precautions
Measurements
Using weight to check elasticity of certain materials
The design of a shoe influences some buyers however the design is mainly used to improve a shoe.
I have worked independently to organise this investigation and I think that it is effective.