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Bio-Engineering“Design a Running Shoe for a Triathlete”Lassiter Engineering, borrowed from OBJECTIVES: You and your classmates are sports engineers assigned to develop a new tri-athlete shoe. Current concerns with existing equipment include a) speed of foot entry into the shoe b) ease of lacing the shoe. There is also a question regarding durability. Does a running shoe for a tri-athlete need to be durable? You and your team will consider several elements of engineering design to develop concepts for a new shoe. Review the background information. BACKGROUND INFORMATION: Design A Running Shoe For A Triathlete The triathlon is a sport where you swim, bike ride and then run. While many people may associate triathlons with the grueling Ironman competitions, there are actually different triathlon distances. For example, the Sprint usually consists of about 1/3 - 1/2 mile swim, a 14-18 mile bike ride and about a 3 mile run. The Olympic distances are a 0.93 mile swim, 24.8 mile bike ride, and a 6.2 mile run (1,500 meter swim, 40km bike, 10k run). The Long-Course or Half-Ironman is 1.2 mile swim, 56 mile ride, 13.1 mile run and the Ironman is 2.4 mile swim, 112 mile ride, and a marathon 26.2 mile run. The order of activity is always the same: swim, bike ride then run. Since the activities are so different, the athletes wear sport specific footwear. In developing a running shoe for a tri-athlete, you may ask what characteristics in a shoe are important. Should a tri-athlete running shoe be any different from a regular running shoe? Characteristics to consider are shoe weight, ease of foot entry into the shoe and ease of attachment to the foot. Remember these athletes will be concluding a bike ride and transitioning to a marathon. For many athletes, getting into the shoe fast to save race time is critical. Traditional lacing systems may be less desirable then other foot enclosure methods. As well, durability may not be an issue for tri-athletes who may choose to use fairly new shoes for each triathlon. However, the wrong shoes cannot only cause discomfort but can be the source of a multitude of conditions and injuries. In this section information is provided on: the components of an athletic shoe and the purpose of these components; foot motion during athletic play forces on the foot and leg; shoe and surface interaction; technology, tools and footwear testing. Copy and paste the following address for background info. The background info consists of 7 pages. Choose “next” at the bottom of the info pages to continue to the next page. you have an old shoe you are ready to toss in the trash, or even one where the upper surface has split and separated from the soles, it might be helpful to take it apart and examine your own shoe and find these components. (Of course, if you are wearing athletic shoes as you read this information you can just look down and inspect them!) What factors are important in the design of a tri-athlete running shoe? How does this differ from a regular running shoe? Consider the following list of factors as you develop your design. For each item write down on your Engineering Worksheet 1 why you think this factor is important or not important to the new shoe design. ? performance ? environment ? life in service ? maintenance ? cost ? size ? weight ? aesthetic ? appearance and finish ? materials ? quality and reliability You may not know the answer to all of these. Simply write down the information you know, then write down questions you have and specific places where you might get the answers. For example, when considering the weight of the shoe you might investigate the following: look at web sites where you can purchase footwear to find the weight of existing shoes. ENGINEERING WORKSHEET 1PROJECT: Triathlete Running Shoe Design DATE: ______________ Design FactorsINSTRUCTIONS: Write down why you think this factor is important or not important to the new shoe design. Product Design Specification Performance (How should the shoe perform?) Information: ________________________________________________ Followup: __________________________________________________ Environment (Under what environmental conditions will the shoe be exposed and used?) Information: ________________________________________________ Followup: __________________________________________________ Life in service (How long should the shoe last?) Information: ________________________________________________ Followup: __________________________________________________ Maintenance (How will the shoe be taken care of to ensure its life in service? Are there any special considerations?) Information: ________________________________________________ Followup: __________________________________________________ Target production and sales (How many shoes will be produced and sold?) Information: ________________________________________________ Followup: __________________________________________________ Cost (How much will the shoes cost?) Information: ________________________________________________ Followup: __________________________________________________ Competition (Do other companies produce similar shoes?) Information: ________________________________________________ Followup: __________________________________________________ Manufacturing (How will the shoe be manufactured to ensure the life in servce, appropriate cost and ease of maintenance?) Information: ________________________________________________ Followup: __________________________________________________ Potential suppliers (What companies might sell these shoes?) Information: ________________________________________________ Followup: __________________________________________________ Size and Weight Information: ________________________________________________ Followup: __________________________________________________ Appearance and finish Information: ________________________________________________ Followup: __________________________________________________ Materials (What materials should be used?) Information: ________________________________________________ Followup: __________________________________________________ Time scales (How long will it take to develop and produce this shoe?) Information: ________________________________________________ Followup: __________________________________________________ Company constraints (Does your client have any concerns that affect the production of this new shoe?) Information: ________________________________________________ Followup: __________________________________________________ Political and social implications Information: ________________________________________________ Followup: __________________________________________What are the characteristics the end user (the athlete) feels are important and why? Develop a list of questions then do data research on the Internet or contact a local running club, athletic footwear store or some tri-athletes. Interview or collect data from at least 5 sources knowledgeable in the triathlon and collect data on what they consider important in a tri-athlete running shoe. Be sure to find out about a) speed of foot entry into the shoe b) ease of lacing the shoe and c) durability. Are these important factors? Write these characteristics down on Engineering Worksheet 2. ENGINEERING WORKSHEET 2PROJECT: Triathlete Running Shoe Design DATE: ______________ List Of Characteristics The Athletes Feel Are Important In A Triathlete Running Shoe1. ________________________________________________________________2. ________________________________________________________________3. ________________________________________________________________4. ________________________________________________________________5. ________________________________________________________________6. ________________________________________________________________7. ________________________________________________________________?Follow Up Questions1. _________________________________2. _________________________________3. _________________________________4. _________________________________5. _________________________________6. _________________________________7. _________________________________Compare the information from Engineering Worksheet 1 and Engineering Worksheet 2 and summarize your information. What are the important characteristics of a tri-athlete running shoe? IMPORTANT CHARACTERISTICS OF A RUNNING SHOE:Type your summary here.Observe the shoe that has been sectioned if it is available.With this information, sketch your shoe and box design. Name your new shoe design. Start construction project on your shoe prototype. Make it full size. You need to make two shoes and one shoe box. Use graphics on the shoe box. Use available materials or purchase materials. They must be constructed from scratch. ................
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