Abstract des Autors

Given that force platforms are regularly used in sport and exercise research not only for data collection but also for evaluating other biomechanical equipment, the lack of attention paid to the likelihood of errors in their measurements is somewhat surprising. Although force platform calibration data are usually available from manufacturers, researchers should not assume the manufacturer-quoted values are retained following installation and over time. Experimental error is inevitable in a study that uses force platforms as a data collection tool and can arise from a variety of sources, which may influence the reliability of the findings and the study's validity. Despite this, neither calibration of force platforms nor estimation of potential errors in force platform measurements is reported in most investigations. Furthermore, because the existing methods reported in studies for force platform error calculation require sophisticated equipment and are time-consuming, their application in other force platform studies would be rather complicated and, in many laboratories, not possible. Therefore, the purpose of the present study was to establish the magnitude of possible measurement errors from a force platform typically used in sport and exercise biomechanics, by applying an easy-to-use, time-efficient method. Verf.-Referat