Friction and tactile perception of textile fabrics

Measuring the friction coefficient between human skin sliding against different types of fabrics has an important role in the development of sport and medical materials. aracteristics of the skin vary significantly along the human body, so to be able to measure the corresponding friction coefficient at every point of the human body, a portable and easily usable measuring probe is indispensable. The probe developed within the scope of this work is based on a multi-component force sensor whereby the normal and tangential forces can be measured to determine the friction coefficient. iction coefficient of human skin against five different fabrics was assessed in two body regions and the average results were compared with the tactile perception. By comparing the answers to a questionnaire about tactile perception with the results of the friction measurements, a positive correlation was obtained especially concerning the slippery and the smoothness properties.