Can We Decrease Floor Impact Noise by Changing Walking Patterns? - a Preliminary Report

Abstract

Floor impact noise from the footsteps of neighbors is one of the major social problems among people living in apartment buildings. In this laboratory environment, walking patterns and impact force on the floor were quantified from seventeen young adults while they were walking normally and quietly to investigate how the voluntary quiet walking to reduce the footstep noise would be different from the normal walking. Eight out of the 17 participants walked with a rearfoot strike pattern, and the rest (9 participants) changed their gait pattern to a non-rearfoot foot strike pattern when asked to walk quietly. Both groups showed decreases in impact peak and vertical loading rate, but the magnitude of the decrements was greater for the participants who walked with the non-rearfoot strike pattern. The preliminary result of this ongoing study suggests that people may not walk quietly even they believe to do so, and it warrants further studies to investigate more effective and easy-to-conduct walking strategies to address the floor impact noise issue of apartment buildings.