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Vibrotactile thresholds at the sole of the foot: effect of vibration frequency and contact location

Vibrotactile thresholds at the sole of the foot: effect of vibration frequency and contact location
Vibrotactile thresholds at the sole of the foot: effect of vibration frequency and contact location
Studies of vibration perception in the glabrous skin of the human hand have identified four mechanoreceptor channels, with each channel showing characteristic variations in thresholds with variations in the frequency of vibration and the area of vibration excitation. To advance understanding of the channels mediating vibration perception on the sole of the foot, this study determined how thresholds depend on the frequency of vibration, the location on the foot (the big toe, the ball of the foot, and the heel), and the gap between a vibrating probe and a fixed surround. Thresholds at the three locations were obtained at the 12 preferred one-third octave centre frequencies from 20 to 250?Hz using a 6-mm diameter probe with both a 10-mm and a 20-mm diameter surround. With the 10-mm surround, the displacement thresholds at all three locations showed flat responses from 20 to 40?Hz. With both the 10-mm and the 20-mm surround, the displacement thresholds at the three locations showed “U-shaped” responses from 40 to 250?Hz. Relative to thresholds obtained with the 20-mm surround, thresholds obtained with the 10-mm surround were lower at the toe and the heel with 20- and 25-Hz vibration, but higher at the ball of the foot with 31.5- to 250-Hz vibration. It is concluded that absolute thresholds for the perception of vibration at the sole of the foot show important variations with location and with contact conditions and tend to be mediated by the NP I channel in the range from about 20 to 40?Hz and the P channel from about 40 to 250?Hz.
vibrotactile, thresholds, mechanoreceptors, foot, vibration, frequency
0899-0220
86-93
Gu, Cheng
491a4290-92e3-412b-b739-372a6c8a25fd
Griffin, Michael J.
24112494-9774-40cb-91b7-5b4afe3c41b8
Gu, Cheng
491a4290-92e3-412b-b739-372a6c8a25fd
Griffin, Michael J.
24112494-9774-40cb-91b7-5b4afe3c41b8

Gu, Cheng and Griffin, Michael J. (2011) Vibrotactile thresholds at the sole of the foot: effect of vibration frequency and contact location. Somatosensory & Motor Research, 28 (3-4), 86-93. (doi:10.3109/08990220.2011.622493).

Record type: Article

Abstract

Studies of vibration perception in the glabrous skin of the human hand have identified four mechanoreceptor channels, with each channel showing characteristic variations in thresholds with variations in the frequency of vibration and the area of vibration excitation. To advance understanding of the channels mediating vibration perception on the sole of the foot, this study determined how thresholds depend on the frequency of vibration, the location on the foot (the big toe, the ball of the foot, and the heel), and the gap between a vibrating probe and a fixed surround. Thresholds at the three locations were obtained at the 12 preferred one-third octave centre frequencies from 20 to 250?Hz using a 6-mm diameter probe with both a 10-mm and a 20-mm diameter surround. With the 10-mm surround, the displacement thresholds at all three locations showed flat responses from 20 to 40?Hz. With both the 10-mm and the 20-mm surround, the displacement thresholds at the three locations showed “U-shaped” responses from 40 to 250?Hz. Relative to thresholds obtained with the 20-mm surround, thresholds obtained with the 10-mm surround were lower at the toe and the heel with 20- and 25-Hz vibration, but higher at the ball of the foot with 31.5- to 250-Hz vibration. It is concluded that absolute thresholds for the perception of vibration at the sole of the foot show important variations with location and with contact conditions and tend to be mediated by the NP I channel in the range from about 20 to 40?Hz and the P channel from about 40 to 250?Hz.

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More information

Published date: 2011
Keywords: vibrotactile, thresholds, mechanoreceptors, foot, vibration, frequency
Organisations: Human Sciences Group

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 354943
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/354943
ISSN: 0899-0220
PURE UUID: da67c0f1-931e-4061-bcd5-710270d2c3a8
ORCID for Michael J. Griffin: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0003-0743-9502

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Date deposited: 23 Jul 2013 13:05
Last modified: 14 Mar 2024 14:26

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Contributors

Author: Cheng Gu
Author: Michael J. Griffin ORCID iD

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