The Effects of Glove Frictional Characteristics and Load on Grasp Force and Grasp Control

Abstract

The objective of this experiment was to determine the effect of varying levels of glove surface friction, glove type, and various loads lifted on submaximal holding performance. The independent variables were glove type, friction level, load lifted, trial, and gender. Ten males and ten females performed two trials of lifting a device similar to a standard hand dynamometer under each of these conditions. All the main effects were significant at the 0.0001 level for the dependent variables of stable force and peak force. The results indicate that the surface friction of a glove affects the amount of force with which the subject feels he needs to grasp an object. In addition, the amount of force exerted per pound lifted decreased with increasing weights, perhaps indicating over exertion at the lighter levels of the weight lifted, or under exertion at the higher levels of load.