Researchers of the BMF Institute of Mechanical Engineering and Biomedical Engineering and the Sports Technology Center of the Riga Technical University (RTU) Faculty of Construction and Mechanical Sciences conduct tests in Finland, creating a scientific database for the development of sports technologies and strengthening international cooperation with the world's TOP 500 universities.
This is the second time that RTU researchers have conducted tests at the Finnish Olympic Research Center. The center in the city of Vuokatti was created in cooperation with the University of Jyväskylä, one of the world's TOP 500 universities. The implemented friction coefficient measurements are part of the State research program "Sports" project "Innovations, methodologies and recommendations for the development and management of the sports industry in Latvia" (No. VPP-IZM-Sports-2023/1-0001).
The systematic tests carried out in Finland provide an opportunity to compare and improve various innovative steel processing technologies and to understand which technologies make the greatest contribution to the improvement of sports equipment. Understanding what processing technologies work under controlled experimental conditions that approximate real-life conditions is the start of building a database. With its help, in the future, it would be possible to predict how changes in specific parameters will affect the friction properties of the slats, thus reducing the number of experiments and therefore the time spent searching for the best recipe for making slats," says Mārtiņš Rubenis, head of the Sports Technology Center of the RTU Science and Innovation Center.
In the Finnish Olympic Research Center there is a large-sized friction coefficient measuring device - a tribometer - which can be used to measure the friction coefficient under the influence of various material modifications and processing. It is a unique machine that allows large sample tests to be carried out in conditions close to the sports racing mode, namely with high speed and pressure on the ice.
By combining the obtained tribology data with the highest-level measurements of the geometry of sample surfaces in the RTU «Mitutoyo» metrology laboratory, it will be possible to get a comprehensive picture of how the modification of sample surfaces affects their friction properties on ice. The uniqueness of this type of research lies precisely in the use of large samples and equipment, which brings the study of friction processes closer to reality, says Ernests Jansons, the leading researcher at the Institute of Mechanical Engineering and Biomedical Engineering. He is pleased with the successful collaboration with researchers at the Department of Sports Technology at the University of Jyväskylä.
In the VPP project, a large-sized tribometer is also planned to be built and placed in the RTU student campus in Ķīpsala. RTU researchers estimate that the knowledge gained about the principles of tribometer operation and construction will be important when designing your own tribometer. Renārs Vītols, a researcher at the Institute of Mechanical Engineering and Biomedical Engineering of RTU, says that considering that in the world experimental equipment of this size can be counted on the fingers of one hand, the opportunity to validate the obtained results will be proof of the abilities of RTU scientists and engineers.
The data obtained during the trip are vital for the successful implementation of the VPP «Sports» project - both for the construction of a large-sized tribometer and for the creation of an improved methodology for characterizing the surfaces of sports equipment. Based on the obtained friction data, it is also planned to prepare a scientific publication and continue systematically conducting research using the knowledge and technical support of both universities.
The project "Innovations, methodologies and recommendations for the development and management of the sports industry in Latvia" is implemented by RTU, RTU Liepaja Academy, Riga Stradiņš University (RSU) and RSU Latvian Sports Pedagogy Academy scientists in order to improve Latvia's achievements in sports. It is planned to improve the evaluation of the equipment needed in technical sports and to develop methods for monitoring the functional abilities and health of athletes and promoting the effectiveness of training. It involves an interdisciplinary research group of more than 80 people with expertise in sports science, computer science, biology, physics, medicine and engineering. In addition, various representatives of the sports field will be involved - not only athletes, coaches, parents of children and young people, but also specialists who work in the field of health monitoring of athletes, such as sports doctors, doctors, physiotherapists, etc., managers of the sports industry and policy makers. The project will last until the end of 2026.
Photo: RTU researchers at the Finnish Olympic Research Center. Publicity photo