A review of the methodology and applications of anthropometry in ergonomics and product design

Abstract

Anthropometry is a key element of ergonomic studies for addressing the problem of fitting the tasks/products to user characteristics, but there is a gap between anthropometric data and their application for designing ergonomic products and environments. This research was conducted to review the literature on the methodology and applications of anthropometry for the ergonomic design of products and environments, and to identify where further research is needed to improve its application and evaluation protocols. One hundred and sixteen papers meeting the inclusion criteria were reviewed. Although a number of anthropometric investigations have been conducted to improve the design of products/environments for different users, further research seems to be necessary, particularly for special groups, such as children, the elderly and people with disabilities. Different anthropometric measurement methods/techniques and fitting criteria are discussed regarding their applicability for various design applications. This review also highlights methodological issues (sampling considerations and prototype evaluation and testing) that should be considered in future research to ensure a user-centred approach of the design process.

Practitioner Summary: A literature review was conducted on the methodology and applications of anthropometry for the ergonomic design of products/environments. This review emphasises the need for anthropometric research to design for special groups, such as children, the elderly and people with disabilities, and methodological issues that should be considered in future research.

Abbreviations: 1D: one-dimensional; 2D: two-dimensional; 3D: three-dimensional; HF/E: Human Factors/Ergonomics; PCA: Principal Components Analysis; CA: Cluster Analysis; DHM: Digital Human Modelling     

Real-world effectiveness of Ergonomic methods

The way ahead with the practical development and application of Ergonomic methods is through a better anticipation and appreciation of changes to system effectiveness and human work that will be incurred through the introduction of new technologies to the workplace. These improvements will involve an improved awareness by the system of the working context and environment. The argued future is with improvements in the handling and use of knowledge by systems. The development of suitable Ergonomics methods, or the careful adaptation of existing methods, should accompany any technological revolution. Moreover, future methods are needed that are specifically developed to be applicable to the real time study of work considering both work context and the amalgamation of results from the use of many diverse methods throughout the design and development life cycle of a system. Part of this process will be a necessary complementation of both quantitative and qualitative methods and guidelines. Another focus should be on creating improved Ergonomics participation within multidisciplinary system design and development environments throughout the system's life cycle. Only through this avenue can Ergonomics show a consistent and valued contribution to quality design and its development. In parallel to such a contribution will be an acceptance by other engineering disciplines, managers, and customers that such an application of Ergonomics is cost effective.     

Inadequate instruction in the electronic workplaces as a cause of mental strain

Mental strain is still a much debated health problem for people working in the electronic workplace. Ergonomics and design help make offices user-friendly, and physical strain can be prevented. A common reason for mental strain is the lack of adequate instruction in the new technologies for employees. An investigation based upon patient information shows the method of instruction used, and recommendations are made. as to which ones should be used. The investigation also shows that environmental factors have to be taken into consideration and that often side-effects have to be dealt with.     

Benefits of nanotechnology for occupational ergonomic design: A positive step toward more protection of workers' health

Nowadays, the combination of “Nanotechnology” and “Ergonomics” has been known as “Nano-ergonomics.” Nano-ergonomics can help to develop more comfortable conditions in workplaces. So, the aim of this study is to reveal benefits of nanotechnology for occupational health and safety design, especially ergonomic design. The search strategy was provided based on cochrane guidelines with main search terms of “Nanotechnology,” “Nanomaterial,” and “Nanoparticle” combined with “Ergonomics” and “Human Factors.” PubMed, Scopus, Web of Sciences and Google Scholar Databases were researched for relevant articles. Also, Google search engine was used to find nano-ergonomic commercial products and to complete the research with identifying additional information. A total of 32 articles were first achieved. By providing Synthesis Without Meta-analysis reporting guideline, finally, four studies were regarded as appropriate. The results showed that nanotechnology has developed in three major areas of ergonomics such as physical, environmental, and cognitive ergonomics, which is a positive step toward more protection of workers' health. Although, there are not any original article related to nanotechnology for ergonomic product design, they are offered as the commercial products by the largest companies such as Amazon. Also, workers at the nanotechnology-related industries have the challenges of exposure to toxic nanomaterials. So, before the application of nanomaterials, we should have proper knowledge of nanomaterials-caused toxic hazards and how to handle them.     

A systematic review on ear anthropometry and its industrial design applications

Ergonomics is extensively studied to provide a scientific understanding of humans’ physical and cognitive use of products and workplaces. Ergonomics of the external ear is crucial for the industrial design of various ear‐related products. For this review, 50 articles regarding ear anthropometry and its applications in product design that met determined inclusion criteria were selected after searching four databases, including Scopus, Web of Science, PubMed, and Science Direct. Previous anthropometric information acquired with traditional measurement, photogrammetric method, and three dimensional (3D) anthropometric techniques (photogrammetry, magnetic resonance imaging, computerized tomography, 3D scanning, and ear impression). Those studies demonstrated that demographic factors, including age, ethnicity, gender, and ear symmetry, should be considered when designing for specific markets. Ear sizes kept growth throughout the entire lifetime. Results also showed that males had larger ear sizes than females in most populations. Most of linear, area, and ratio dimensions showed a good symmetry between left and right ears, while angular dimensions tended to be nonsymmetric. Differences in anthropometric findings existed among Asian, Western, and African populations. Hence, there is a need to establish more universal anthropometric databases for different ethnicities to meet the development of product form and function. Furthermore, fit and comfort perception was important to be examined for product design, which can be studied through questionnaire on comfort perception, analysis online comments of consumers, and virtual fit analysis. With a comprehensive presentation of literature, future research opportunities were inspired from the perspective of industrial design.     

Human factors in command and control for the Los Angeles Fire Department

Ergonomics owes much of its operations and systems heritage to military research. Since public safety systems such as police, fire departments and civil defence organisations are quasi-military in nature, one may reasonably use the findings from military ergonomics research to extrapolate design data for use in a decision-making system. This article discusses a case study concerning Human Factors in command and control for the Los Angeles Fire Department. The case involved transfer from a manual dispatch system involving three geographic areas of metropolitan Los Angeles to one central computer-aided command and control system. Comments are made on console mock-ups, environmental factors in the Control Centre placement of the consoles. Because of extreme delays in procurement of the recommended hardware it is doubtful that empirical testing of the ergonomics aspect of the system will take place.     

Inadequate instruction in the electronic workplaces as a cause of mental strain

Abstract

Mental strain is still a much debated health problem for people working in the electronic workplace. Ergonomics and design help make offices user-friendly, and physical strain can be prevented. A common reason for mental strain is the lack of adequate instruction in the new technologies for employees. An investigation based upon patient information shows the method of instruction used, and recommendations are made. as to which ones should be used. The investigation also shows that environmental factors have to be taken into consideration and that often side-effects have to be dealt with.     

Human factors in patient safety as an innovation

The use of Human Factors and Ergonomics (HFE) tools, methods, concepts and theories has been advocated by many experts and organizations to improve patient safety. To facilitate and support the spread of HFE knowledge and skills in healthcare and patient safety, we propose to conceptualize HFE as innovations whose diffusion, dissemination, implementation and sustainability need to be understood and specified. Using Greenhalgh et al. (2004) model of innovation, we identified various factors that can either hinder or facilitate the spread of HFE innovations in healthcare organizations. Barriers include lack of systems thinking, complexity of HFE innovations and lack of understanding about the benefits of HFE innovations. Positive impact of HFE interventions on task performance and the presence of local champions can facilitate the adoption, implementation and sustainability of HFE innovations. This analysis concludes with a series of recommendations for HFE professionals, researchers and educators.     

Perception of products by progressive multisensory integration. A study on hammers

The aim of this work is to determine the influence of multisensory (visual-haptic) integration and the level of interaction (seeing photographs, seeing the actual product, touching it and using it) on the perception of products, including perceived ergonomics. The product selected for the experiment was the hammer, as this will help to establish whether emotional design studies can also apply to ‘commercial’ products. Subjective opinions of users were evaluated through semantic differential tests. A factor analysis identified six semantic factors or axes (Quality/Robustness, Ergonomics/Appearance, Innovation, Lightness, Dynamic Effects, and Efficacy). Results show that Lightness and Dynamic Effects are quite sensitive to the level of interaction, while Ergonomics/Appearance is partially affected. However, the perceptions of Innovation, Quality/Robustness and Efficacy are not so affected and they could be detected through a lower level of interaction (i.e. seeing photographs). This suggests that commercial products seem sensitive to emotional design studies and that multisensory integration enhances the perception of the factors that are clearly linked with physical interaction between users and tools, i.e. Ergonomics/Appearance, Lightness and Dynamic Effects. Additionally, it should be highlighted that some aspects related with the ergonomics and ease of use of products are also perceived at different stages of interaction.     

Opportunities for meeting sustainability objectives

It is inevitable that theory and good practice in Human Factors/Ergonomics (HF/E) should comprise engineering for sustainability to safeguard ecology and maintaining the quality of life. There are immediate and longer-term opportunities for HF/E community to be a key contributor in solving sustainability issues. However, sustainability research in HF/E domain has only been partially explored. A further theoretical and practical contribution is needed. Digital Human Modeling (DHM) is a potential method to integrate human element into sustainability research. However, current DHM tools are limited in resolving these issues until sustainability objectives are explicitly considered. There are DHM tools available to evaluate human performance. However typically do not consider sustainability aspects of the work environment. This study introduces two conceptual digital ergonomics toolkits, Air Quality Index Assessment and Metabolic Energy Expenditure, to demonstrate the potential use of DHM in evaluating the health risks and worker's performance in work design. Incorporating human element into sustainability through DHM (digital ergonomics toolkits) reduces the need for in-situ human data collection and physical prototyping for work environments that are subject to poor air quality, toxic exposure and handling of hazardous materials. The DHM toolkits proposed in this study can bring attention towards building multidisciplinary collaboration that can enhance HF/E outreach goals in sustainability-related engineering design.Relevance to IndustryDHM can help industry to minimize the need of in-situ human data collection, reduce the need of physical prototyping, and optimize overall system performance for where subjects are exposed to poor air quality, toxic exposure, and handling of hazardous materials.     

Plenary Discussion: Relevance of Physiological and Psychological Criteria to Man-Machine Systems: The Present State of the Art

Abstract

Ergonomics seems to be more physiologically-oriented than does human factors engineering, its American counterpart. Quantitative support for this view is provided by content analyses of papers presented at certain meetings of two European and one American professional society, and of papers published in the journals Ergonomics and Human Factors. Several possibilities are adduced to account for this divergent emphasis placed on the use of physiological and psychological criteria. More serious than such differences is that it is not immediately apparent how most criteria used in ergonomic and human factors research relate to the criteria that are used for the design and evaluation of systems. If we are to have a viable technology we need to be able to show the relationship between the criteria used in experimental work and those used in the practical world.     

The IEA contribution to the transition of Ergonomics from research to practice

The future growth of ergonomics as a scientific discipline will require a greater focus on methods to transition research findings into practice. Whilst the International Ergonomics Association (IEA) and the Federated Ergonomics Societies provide opportunities to promote exchange on ergonomics research and collaboration in research programs, the future sustainability of the domain will be dependent on the provision of ongoing educational opportunities in ergonomics and the transitioning of the research findings into practice. This transition will require greater external focus outside the ergonomics profession in working in collaboration and partnership with other professional associations, governments and international agencies. Practical tools that are targeted towards particular user groups within the community, workplace, and governments will enhance the opportunities for the transition of ergonomics research into practice. Focus on extramural initiatives such as Ergonomics Checkpoints, integration of the ergonomics design process into the International Organisation for Standardization Guidelines, and the incorporation of ergonomics into the World Health Organisation research programs will ensure that the positioning of ergonomics will continue at an international level.     

Powered domestic lawnmowers: design for safety

The paper describes a detailed accident investigation carried out by the Institute for Consumer Ergonomics for the Consumer Safety Unit at the Department of Trade. As such it serves to illustrate the application of two specific research techniques (i) analysis of product related accident data, and (ii) ergonomics evaluation of current models - and shows how these may be used to help in defining standards and criteria for the design of safer products. The study identified lawnmower features and activities associated with accidents recorded by the Home Accident Surveillance System. Ergonomics appraisal by expert assessment and user trials highlighted hazards associated with currently available powered lawnmowers. Performance criteria for safer design of selected features were developed with the aim of overcoming these hazards. At the end of the study liaison was sought with manufacturers to discuss how the results from the work could be used to effect.     

Applying signal detection theory to determine the ringtone volume of a mobile phone under ambient noise

Although technologies for automatically adjusting the volume of mobile phone ringtones according to the ambient noise level have been developed, few studies have investigated the volume (dB) of the ringtone. This study suggested design recommendations for the ringtone volume under loud ambient noise. Based on signal detection theory, two-alternative forced-choice tracking was performed by thirty subjects to obtain hearing thresholds under noisy conditions. Six experimental conditions were examined: all combination of three pure tone frequencies (500 Hz, 1000 Hz, 4000 Hz) and two white noise levels (70 dB, 80 dB). The results showed that the ringtone volume should increase by 10–15 dB on average when the noise level increases from 70 dB to 80 dB. When adjusting the volume according to the ambient noise level, the volume should be changed differently according to the frequencies of a ringtone. The ringtone should be composed of low-frequency sounds under loud ambient noise because the subjects were very sensitive to the pure tone with frequency of 500 Hz. The results of this study could be used when developing design guidelines for the adaptive ringtone of a mobile phone. Moreover, designers can use this method to design other auditory signals such as notification and emergency alarms that have different chances of signal detectability.Relevance to industryThe results of this study may provide useful information to designers who consider the volume and frequency of a ringtone when adjusting ringtone volume according to ambient noise level. Moreover, the method used in the study could also be widely used to design auditory signals of mobile devices other than mobile phones.     

浅谈人体工程学在珠宝首饰设计中的运用

珠宝首饰设计是揉合材料和科技,艺术理论与表达手段所进行的设计,要考虑到人们佩戴时的生理感受及心理感受,即舒适性,装饰性,实用性,健康性甚至娱乐性。人体工程学是指导设计学科进行设计研究的重要科学内容。现在已经有效地运用到空间技术、建筑及室内设计中去。但到目前为止,在首饰设计中的运用还存在很大的研究空间。     

It's a small world after all: contrasting hierarchical and edge networks in a simulated intelligence analysis task

This article presents the rationale behind an important enhancement to a socio-technical model of organisations and teams derived from military research. It combines this with empirical results which take advantage of these enhancements. In Part 1, a new theoretical legacy for the model is developed based on Ergonomics theories and insights. This allows team communications data to be plotted into the model and for it to demonstrate discriminate validity between alternative team structures. Part 2 presents multinational data from the Experimental Laboratory for Investigating Collaboration, Information-sharing, and Trust (ELICIT) community. It was surprising to see that teams in both traditional hierarchical command and control and networked 'peer-to-peer' organisations operate in broadly the same area of the model, a region occupied by networks of communication exhibiting 'small world' properties. Small world networks may be of considerable importance for the Ergonomics analysis of team organisation and performance. PRACTITIONER SUMMARY: This article is themed around macro and systems Ergonomics, and examines the effects of command and control structures. Despite some differences in behaviour and measures of agility, when given the freedom to do so, participants organised themselves into a small world network. This network type has important and interesting implications for the Ergonomics design of teams and organisations.     

Knowledge sharing and expertise coordination of event response in organizations

This paper provides an overview of opportunities and challenges for expert coordination, knowledge sharing, and task performance using advanced information and communication technologies. Evolving in part from [Hendrick, H., 1991. Ergonomics in organizational design and management. Ergonomics 34(6), 743–756] discussion of macroergonomics, this paper describes the author's framework for systems engineering analysis of information flow and performance at team and organizational units of analysis. Work in the author's research lab has focused on several aspects of information technology use and team interactions to support shared understandings, task demands, and effective responses in responses to events. Multiple empirical studies are summarized describing evaluations of technology use, task cycles and expert knowledge coordination in several settings, including aerospace, healthcare, and project management.     

人机工程学在鞋类设计中的应用

本文从人机工程学角度分析鞋类设计的各个要素,即尺寸、功能、样式、材料、色彩以及人的心理六个要素。探讨鞋类设计与人机工程学的关系,力求寻找满足人们需要的最佳鞋类设计原则,从而为人机工程学在鞋类设计中的应用提供有力素材。