A Novel Ski–Snow Tribometer and its Precision

Abstract

Friction between skis and snow was studied in a variety of field and laboratory measurements. Whilst field tests have the drawback of changing conditions, in laboratory tests sport-specific sample sizes and speeds could not be measured up to now. Hence, a novel linear tribometer was developed allowing studies with whole skis at sport-specific speeds. The precision of the tribometer was better than 2.2 %. The dominant cause for the imprecision was the variability of the single snow tracks at lower speed, whilst at higher speeds also the determination of normal and friction force and speed became relevant. The precision is high enough for discriminating differences needed for the analysis of different ski and snow conditions and the study of friction processes.