Stairway risers and treads: acceptable and preferred dimensions

Irvine, Christine; Snook, Sarah; Sparshatt, J.H.

doi:10.1016/0003-6870(90)90005-i

Cited by 39 publications

(35 citation statements)

References 5 publications

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“…Designs that are pleasing to the eye may be hazardous because they do not take into account normal walking gait or expected step height. Additional concerns relate to the characteristics of people who use stairways: age, anthropometrics, physical condition, apparel, and task attention [4][5][6] .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of Load Carrying Methods and Stair Slopes on Physiological Response and Postures during Stairs Ascending and Descending

Tseng

Liu

2011

Ind Health

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The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of load carrying methods, stair slopes and walking speeds on heart rate and walking postures. Nine participants climbed up and down stairs with various stair slopes (24°, 30° and 36°), walking speeds (72, 96, and 132 steps per minute), and using different load carrying methods (empty loads, backpack, and hand-held). The effects of these factors on heart rate, Borg-RPE and flexion angles of knee joints, hip joints and trunk angles were investigated. This study demonstrated that increased stair slopes and walking speed were associated with increased heart rate and RPE. The heart rate for empty loads subjects was lowest, followed by backpack load and hand-held load. Climbing stairs with larger inclination was associated with smaller knee joint flexion angle and larger trunk and hip joint flexion angle. In conclusion, it is easier for subjects to carry a load of the same weight up stairs by backpack than by hand. However, the stair slope should be less than 30°. Thus, the standard fixed stair slope (30° of stair slope) on recommended for riser height and tread depth are 160 mm (6.5 inches) and tread depth 280 mm (11 inches).

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of Load Carrying Methods and Stair Slopes on Physiological Response and Postures during Stairs Ascending and Descending

Tseng

Liu

2011

Ind Health

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“…In this paper, the selected step design specification is based on the most preferred step dimensions provided in previous evidence-based studies for different age groups, including older adults 16,18 .…”

Section: Element 4: Step Designmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For the "minimum going depth dimension" feature, there are three scenarios 16,18 : 1) 280 ≤ going depth ≤ 330, which is the optimal scenario and has an associated rating factor of 1.00; 2) going depth ≤ 280; and 3) going depth ≥ 330. The latter two scenarios are the worst case and have an associated rating factor of 0.4.…”

Section: Feature 1: Going Depthmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Integrated Approach for Older Adult Friendly Home Stair-Case Design

Afifi¹,

Parke²,

Al‐Hussein³

2012

Proceedings of the International Symposium on Automation and Robotics in Construction (IAARC)

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Purpose The concept of designing or modifying home environments plays an important role in maintaining safety for older adults (65 and older). Poor staircase architectural design could contribute to increasing the risk of falling for older adults. The purpose of this research is to evaluate staircase architectural design by investigating the risk of falling associated with staircase elements and aiming to improve the surrounding environment for older adults living independently in their homes. This paper presents research which is built around the following hypotheses: 'Improving the architectural design of staircase could reduce the risk of falling for older adults'. Method This research provides an integrated evidence-based assessment that combines all aspects related to staircase architectural design, represented in the following 3 stages. Stage 1 constructs a hierarchy of four elements which represent the architectural design of the staircase as follows: (i) staircase geometrical design; (ii) handrail design; (iii) lighting; and (iv) step design. Each element is divided to a number of features; for instance, handrail design, if exists, is divided into five features: (i) handrail height; (ii) handrail cross-section; (iii) handrail surface texture; (iv) handrail extension; and (v) minimum handrail-wall clearance. Each feature is divided into a number of scenarios representing the different architectural design alternatives for that feature: e.g., variation on handrail heights. A rating factor that represents the degree by which the proposed scenario reduces the risk of falling for older adult, is assigned to each scenario. Stage 2 develops a rating system for the analyzing staircase elements and features which present the degree to which each element and its features reduce the risk of falling for older adults. In this stage, a mathematical model is developed to calculate the rating value for different staircase design scenarios. Stage 3 develops a decision tree analysis module called a design assessment tree (DAT) which represents a complete vision for different staircase design scenarios. A case study is presented in order to illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed methodology. Results & Discussion The result of the developed rating system is a rating number for different staircase design scenarios that represent the degree by which the proposed staircase architectural design reduces the risk of falling for older adults. Figure 1 illustrates the optimal design scenario for the geometrical design element, which is part of the developed DAT for the staircase assessment procedure. DAT works as a manual for architects to represent the staircase assessment for any proposed design, and to visualize the optimal design scenario comparing to other scenarios in the each branch.

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“…Prior to this study, Irvine, Snook and Sparshatt [22] used a fitting trial to find acceptable and preferred tread width and riser heights for straight stairs.…”

Section: Fitting Trialmentioning

confidence: 99%