This project has focused on aerodynamics in hand cycling. Hand cycles are used by people with disabilities, paralysis or amputation of a lower limb. The idea for the project was initiated by a para-cyclist who suspected that his feet were causing an unnecessarily large air resistance when racing. The aim of this project was therefore to investigate this suspicion. If the excessive air resistance was confirmed, a new footrest would be developed to reduce it. The project was conducted in collaboration with the orthopedic clinic Team Olmed who had previously had contact with the user. Simulations on the feet were carried out in FloEFD to investigate the air resistance caused by the feet. Any excessive air resistance could then be confirmed and the development of a new footrest that would reduce drag could begin. Through literature studies regarding aerodynamics and analogies, brainstorming and brainwriting and with help from experts different concepts were generated. The concept of a streamlined footrest served as a basis to reduce the air resistance. Two of the concepts were modeled with a rounded shape that gently breaks the air and forms a streamline along the body. New simulations were conducted and later compared with the old footrest and the new streamline characteristics could then be confirmed. The result of the post simulations cannot be definitively quantified, but they indicate that air resistance is reduced by about 0,3 N for the two new footrests. This represents an improvement of 12-15 seconds for the cyclist on a 20 km race, which could be crucial in future competitions. The concept that provided the lowest air resistance was also developed as a prototype. The prototype was tested on the user's bicycle and feet with a satisfactory result. The project shows that it is relevant to develop more aerodynamic footrests in the sport hand- cycling. The time saved with the footrest developed in this project had meant the difference between victory and a fourth place at the Paralympics in 2008.

Syfte Syftet med studien var att observera bilateral effektutveckling, samt muskelaktivering i de övre extremiteterna. En bilateral övning observerades för att se om skillnader i muskelaktivering och effektutveckling fanns i dominant respektive icke dominant övre extremitet, samt diskutera dess implikationer. Metod Nio tränade deltagare fick utföra armcykling på en armergometer som modifierats så att rörelsen blev bilateral. Armcyklingen pågick i cirka åtta minuter med fyra belastningsnivåer (30W, 60W, 90W, 120W) där 50 RPM eftersträvades. Vid varje belastningsnivå registrerades effektutveckling och EMG under 30 sekunder. Medelvärdet av effektutvecklingen i dominant och icke dominant sida jämfördes med ett tvåvägs oberoende ANOVA. Resultat Vid effektutvecklingen hos dominant och icke dominant sida av kroppen fanns en statistisk signifikant skillnad mellan dominant och icke dominant sida F (3, 64) = 4.13, p = .046; med en medelstor effektstorlek (partial eta squared = .061) p-värdet sattes till .05. Icke dominant sida utförde mest arbete. Bakre deltoideus aktiverades generellt sett lika mycket i dominant och icke dominant sida, dock var icke dominant sida mer aktiv. De dominanta fingerflexorerna hade en större aktivering kontra de icke dominanta. Slutsatser Studien fann signifikant skillnad i effektutveckling av dominant och icke dominant sida av de övre extremiteterna där icke dominant sida gjorde ett större arbete. Muskel EMG visade stora individuella skillnader hos deltagarna. / Objectives The objective of the study was to observe bilateral power production and muscle activation in the upper extremities. A bilateral exercise was observed to see if differences in muscle activation and power production was present in dominant and non-dominant extremities, and furthermore discuss the implications. Method Nine trained participants performed arm cycling on a modified arm ergometer so the movement became bilateral. During eight minutes of cycling with four levels of intensity (30W, 60W, 90W, 120W) where 50 RPM was strived for. 30 seconds of power production and EMG data were recorded for each intensity. A two-way independent ANOVA was conducted on the mean values of power production of the dominant and the non-dominant side. Results There was a significant difference in the dominant and non-dominant side F (3, 64) = 4.13, p = .046; with a medium effect size (partial eta squared = .0.61) p value set to .05. The nondominant side did the majority of the work. The posterior deltoids had a similar muscle activation, however the non-dominant activated more. The dominant finger flexors activated more than the non-dominant with large individual differences within the sample group. Conclusions This study found significant differences in power production in the dominant and the nondominant side of the upper extremities. The non-dominant side had a greater power production. The EMG-data showed great individual differences within muscle activation.