The relation of foot clearance and gait speed during stair ascent and descent

This study uses inertial sensors to analyze foot clearance and its relation to two gait conditions (walking and running) while traveling on stairs (ascent and descent). Our study found that during stair ascent, clearance is significantly larger when running. This finding suggests that humans use the additional clearance to produce the impulsive motion needed to reach the next step using the shortest time. During stair descent this difference is insignificant, suggesting that foot clearance does not affect gait speed.