Quan-Hai Li

A simultaneous measurement method to characterize touch properties of textile materials

Touch feels of textile materials are major factors related to the clothing comfort. We could perceive touch feels through contacts between skin and fabrics. Latest researches concluded there were four types of touch information including thermal, proprioceptive, cutaneous, and irritant and pains. There is a clear gap between current measurement methods on fabric touch feels and latest theoretical research outputs. This report introduced a new characterization method of textile touch feels. It simultaneously measured four categories of physical properties of textiles. Fabric Touch Tester (FTT), the reported instrument, included four modules as thermal, compression, bending and surface. Measuring time of one complete test on this instrument only took about 5 minutes. Output of FTT contained comprehensive descriptions on the physical properties of samples in both directions (warp/wale and weft/course). Experiment results showed that FTT could measure and distinguish these fabrics with good repeatability and reproducibility. Correlation study between FTT results and subjective evaluation scores showed there were significant correlations between them. Initial findings were concluded on the effect of thermal properties on other tactile perceptions as well as the interactions between different physical parameters.

Assessment of eco‐functional properties of shopping bags: Development of a novel eco‐functional tester

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to discuss the development of a novel test instrument to quantify the eco‐functional properties of various shopping bags. One of the main properties, which lies at the interface of both ecological and functional properties, is the reusability of shopping bags. Other properties at this juncture also include the impact strength and weight holding capacity of a shopping bag.Design/methodology/approach – The developed tester can be used to assess these three properties (reusability, impact strength and weight holding capacity) of any type of shopping bag. This study discusses the concept and development of an eco‐functional tester for shopping bags. It also reports test results of the reusability, impact strength and weight holding capacity of different types of shopping bags. Reusability and impact strength are expressed by two variants: absolute maximum capability and comparative maximum capability.Findings – According to the test results, plastic bags outscore paper b...

Effects of contact method and acclimation on temperature and humidity in touch perception

Physical stimuli from contacted objects are recorded by skin receptors and are transmitted to neural signals to the cerebrum to generate touch perceptions. Despite numerous studies having been conducted on the link between the physical properties of contacted objects and psychological sensations, factors besides the stimuli themselves have seldom been investigated. The contact method and acclimation to environmental factors, such as temperature and humidity, could affect the functions of responsible receptors, which, in consequence, might affect the touch perception. This study is designed around a series of experiments involving 226 human subjects adapted to the climate environments of six East-Asia cities. The results revealed that the contact method affected the responses of smoothness sensation but not the stimuli discriminations. This agrees with the hypothesis that both the slowly adapting type I (SA1) fiber and the Pacinian afferent (PC) fiber are responsible for smoothness sensation. SA1 fibers can function through passive touch because of a superficial location in the dermis, while PC fibers, which are located deeper in the dermis, are triggered during active touching. The effect of contact method on softness sensation is not significant because the responsible receptor is the SA1 fiber. The effects of acclimation to temperature and relative humidity were also investigated. Positive relationships were found with smoothness perception and negative relationships were found with warmth perception. This suggests that acclimation to temperature and relative humidity can affect the receptor thresholds and, in consequence, affect the touch sensation.