An Analysis of Sensory Hands as Identified by Selected Consumers

Abstract

The fabric hand perceived by evaluators was investigated on the basis of basic hand properties and sensory hand categories. The ten test fabrics, chosen to represent sensory hand categories, and two nonwovens were evaluated for their subjective attributes and eleven physical hand properties. The analysis of data revealed that subjective thickness and warmth were significantly correlated with objective thickness, hardness, tenacity, and coefficient of friction, while other subjective hand attributes, namely stiffness and roughness, were correlated with flexural rigidity and coefficient of friction, respectively. The similarity of sensory hand categories was evaluated by subjective hand profile and cluster analyses. The new insight gained from these analyses can be used to improve the aesthetic properties of new textile products.

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