The impact of crossable danger tactile ground indicators on the center of mass and reaction forces during walking of healthy sighted subjects.

Authors

Antonella Tatarelli, Tiwana Varrecchia, Alessio Silvetti, Lorenzo Fiori, Giorgia Chini, Alberto Ranavolo

Published in

Traffic injury prevention. Pages 1-7. Aug 21, 2026. Epub Aug 21, 2026.

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to analyze the kinematic and kinetic effects of tactile ground indicators in M-PVC-P technopolimer on gait in healthy sighted people to determine their potential as passive haptic alert systems.
Sixteen healthy individuals walked across two tactile codes, "crossable danger" and "attention" codes, as well as a straight tactile paving (control). Gait kinematics and kinetics were measured with a stereophotogrammetric motion capture system and dynamometric platforms. The center of mass displacement and ground reaction forces were investigated and statistically compared.
Walking over both tactile codes resulted in a significant increase in medio-lateral center of mass displacement compared to the control path. The vertical ground reaction force and its two peaks were much lower on tactile codes, indicating a more cautious and adaptable stride pattern. The "attention" code reduced antero-posterior force displacement and increased medio-lateral displacement.
Mechanical disturbances caused by tactile ground indicators affect gait dynamics in healthy individuals, activating postural control mechanisms. These findings show that tactile surfaces could be used as low-cost haptic alert systems to improve pedestrian awareness, particularly among smartphone-distracted walkers.

PMID:
42628116
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 22 Aug 2026.

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