Superior oar handles developed via a local R & I project could eradicate rowing blisters and injuries for good

Superior oar handles developed via a local R & I project could eradicate rowing blisters and injuries for good.

Aux-Row is a research project to develop superior oar handles, which will address problems caused by strenuous and repetitive movement. Collaboration between academics and researchers from the University of Malta’s Metamaterials Unit (Faculty of Science) and the Podiatry Department (Faculty of Health Sciences) and marine products manufacturing experts Action Frame Ltd, has received circa €200,000 from the National R&I Fusion Fund, which is administered by the Malta Council for Science and Technology.

Addressing a public engagement event which took place on the 30th of May at Esplora in   Kalkara, MCST Chairman, Dr. Tonio Portughese said, “The Malta Council for Science and Technology plays a continuous and significant role in strengthening the Research and Innovation pillar in the Maltese Islands, and has been responsible for administering around twenty million euros in the last seven years alone, funnelling these funds towards beneficial projects, such as the one we are talking about today.” He added that, while MCST considers investment in Research and Innovation as being fundamental in supporting and innovating economic activity, society can reap  many other benefits from the final outcomes of these research projects. The contribution of such projects is not limited solely to its economic input but includes a significant human element.

In Malta, rowing is mostly associated with tradition, our National Regatta and the Grand Harbour. However, at international level, rowing is known to be one of the most demanding and technical Olympic or Paralympic sports performed on water. Racing is typically over a 2000m distance in which rowers complete hundreds of oar pulls and rotations usually in just a few minutes. Such a strenuous and repetitive movement, unfortunately, is known to result in various injuries, including injuries in upper limbs, the more common being wrist/forearm injury, palm blisters and calluses.

Professor Joseph N. Grima, the coordinator of this project and a rower himself, emphasised the importance of the findings from this project to the rowing community, “Rowers spend hours and hours every week performing the same repetitive action of pulling and feathering their oars with the aim of improving their technique and performance. A wrist injury or a blistered hand can compromise all this effort, as the athlete would not be able to perform at her/his best. Thus, an oar handle that provides a better grip is likely to be appreciated by rowers. I sincerely hope that our research work carried out as part of Aux-Row, some of which has already been published, can lead to oar handles that will make rowing blisters and wrist injuries a thing of past.”

This project has attempted to address these problems through the development of novel oar handles with a better and more effective grip. These grips were developed by transposing fundamental research on auxetic materials to the world of rowing. Auxetic materials behave in a rather exceptional manner by becoming wider rather than thinner when stretched, and contracting laterally when uniaxially compressed, a property that imparts several practical benefits to the material.

The research path leading to the development of these grips also permitted the acquisition of very important knowledge on the sport of rowing itself, the manner how auxetic materials behave when indented, put under pressure or sheared, as well as how rowers perceive their blisters and calluses.

The project has already led to more than twenty peer-reviewed journal publications and a patent has been filed.

Proġett tar-Riċerka u l-Innovazzjoni juri prospetti tajbin għall-qaddiefa permezz ta’ titjib fil-manku tal-moqdief li jista’ jtaffi problemi fl-idejn.

Aux-Row huwa proġett tar-riċerka li qed jindirizza problemi kkawżati minn moviment ta’ repetittiv u ta’ strapazz fil-qdif, permezz tal-iżvilupp ta’ mankijiet ġodda tal-imqadef. Kollaborazzjoni konġunta bejn akkademiċi u riċerkaturi mill-Unit tal-Metamaterjali fil-Fakultà tax-Xjenza, id-Dipartiment tal-Podjatrija mill-Fakultà tax-Xjenzi tas-Saħħa u esperti tal-prodotti tal-manifattura tal-baħar, mill-kumpanija Action Frame Ltd. irċieva madwar €200,000 mill-Fond Nazzjonali tal-R &I amministrat mill-Kunsill Malti għax-Xjenza u t-Teknoloġija l-MCST.

Jindirizza avveniment bl-involviment tal-pubbliku, li seħħ fit-30 ta’ Mejju, l-Esplora, il-Kalkara, iċ-Chairman tal-MCST, Dr Tonio Portughese qal li “l-Kunsill Malti għax-Xjenza u t-Teknoloġija għandu rwol kontinwu u sinifikanti fit-tisħiħ tal-pilastru tar-Riċeka u l-Innovazzjoni fil-Gżejjer Maltin, u sa issa amministra madwar għoxrin miljun ewro fl-aħħar seba’ snin, bil-fondi jmorru għal proġetti ta’ benefiċċju, bħal dan il-proġett li qed nittrattaw illum.” Żied jgħid li filwaqt li l-MCST tqis l-investiment fir-Riċerka u l-Innovazzjoni bħala fundamentali billi tgħin fl-innovazzjoni u fl-attività ekonomika, mir-riżultati finali ta’ dawn il-proġetti ta’ riċerka, is-soċjetà tista’ taħsad ħafna benefiċċji oħra. Il-kontibut ta’ proġetti bħal dawn mhuwiex limitat biss għall-element ekonomiku tiegħu iżda jinkludi l-element uman sinifkanti.

F’Malta, il-qdif huwa assoċjat l-aktar mat-tradizzjoni, ir-regatta nazzjonali tagħna u l-port il-kbir. Madankollu, fuq livell internazzjonali, il-qdif huwa magħruf bħala wieħed mill-aktar sports Olimpiċi jew Paralimpiċi impenjattivi u tekniċi li jsir fuq l-ilma. It-tlielaq tipikament isiru fuq distanza ta’ 2000m li fiha l-qaddiefa jagħmlu mijiet ta’ ġbid tal-imqadef u rotazzjonijiet, tipikament fi ftit minuti. Tali moviment ripetittiv u b’saħħa kbira, sfortunatament, jikkaġuna problemi fl-idejn, l-aktar komuni fil-polz/driegħ kif ukoll bżieżaq tal-ilma u kalllijiet.

Il-koordinatur tal-proġett il-Professur Joseph N. Grima, , spjega kif hu u qaddiefa oħra, kwazi kujlum, jipprattikaw l-istess moviment repetittiv bil-għan li jtejbu t-teknika u l-prestazzjoni tagħhom. Uġieħ fil-polz jew infafet fl-idejn jafu jtellfu l-qaddief milli jwettaq l-aħjar tiegħu/tagħha. Għalhekk, il-qaddiefa dejjem ifittxu li l-moqdief ikollu qabda tajba u effettiva. Nittama li x-xogħol ta’ riċerka tagħna li sar bħal parti minn Aux-Row, li parti minnu ġie ppubblikat, jista’ jwassal għal mankijiet tal-moqdief superjuri li jnaqqsu l-problemi tal-ġilda u fil-polz.” Dan il-proġett uza ir-riċerka fundamentali dwar materjali auxetiċi biex ipprova jindirizza dawn il-problemi permezz tal-iżvilupp ta’ mankijiet aħjar li joffru qabdaaktar effettiva. IMaterjali auxetiċi jġibu ruħhom b’mod pjuttost eċċezzjonali, għalex dawn jiħxienu minflok jidjiequ meta jiġġebbdu. Barra minn hekk, jinġibdu l-gewwa meta jikkompressaw ruħhom, propjetà li tagħti ħafna benefiċċji lill-materjal.”

Din il-mogħdija ta’ riċerka li wasslet għall-iżvilupp ta’ dawn il-mankijiet ippermettaw li jinġabar it-tagħrif neċessarju dwar l-isport tal-qdif inniffsu, il-mod kif iġibu ruħhom il-materjali auxetiċi meta jingħafsu jew jitpoġġew taħt pressjoni. Dan il-proġett studjawkoll il-perċezzjoni tal-qaddiefa dwar il-kallijiet u l-infafet.

Ir-riżulati ta’ il-proġett deġa wasslu għall- aktar minn għoxrin pubblikazzjoniji peer-reviewed u patent ġiet ippreżentata.