ERGONOMICS IN

MANUFACTURING
DR. SITI ZAWIAH MD. DAWAL
DEPT. OF ENGINEERING DESIGN
AND MANUFACTURE
UNIVERSITY OF MALAYA
 Anthropometry
Measurement of the human body
Anthropometric information describes the
dimensions of the human body, usually
through the use of bony landmarks to
which height, breadths, depths, distances,
circumferences and curvatures are
measured.
 Selection Vs Modification
Assume a heavy box is to be moved from
point A to point B.
Realizing that people are vary, there are
probably two basic strategy,
- One alternative is to use selection, that
is, from the population of workers select a
strong persons.
- This can be label as fit the person to the
job
Another alternative is job modification –
that is almost everyone can do it.
This can be labeled as fit the job to the
person or fitting the job to you.

Given the decision to modify the job, one

question is “ how much modification is
necessary?”
 Anthropometry and its used
Body size and proportion vary greatly between
different population and racial groups-a fact
which designers must never lose sight of when
designing for an interna-tional market.

The importance of anthropometric

considerations in design as follows:

If a piece of equipment was designed to fit 90% of the
male U.S. population, it would fit roughly 90% of
Germans, 80% of Frenchmen, 65% of Italians, 45% of
Japanese, 25% of Thais and 10% of Vietnamese.
It is usually impracticable and expensive to
design products individually to suit the
requirements of every user.

Mass-produced and designed to fit a wide range

of users-the custom tailor, dressmaker, and
cobbler are perhaps the only remaining
examples of truly user-oriented designers in
western industrial societies.
Availability of Anthropometric Data
Anthropometry of military populations is
usually well documented and is used in
the design of everything from cockpits to
ranges and sizes of boots and clothing.

Data are available for U.S., British, and

other European groups, as well as
Japanese citizens.
Pheasant (1986) provides a useful and well -
illustrated collection of anthropometric data and a
method of estimating unknown anthropometric
dimensions from data on stature.

Problems with much of the anthropometric data

from the United States and Europe are the age of
the data and the lack of standardization across
surveys.
1. Structural Anthropometric Data

 Measurements of bodily dimensions of

subject in fixed (static) position.

 Measurements made from one clearly

identifiable anatomical landmark to another
or to a fixed point in space.
2. Functional Anthropometric Data

 Data that describes the movement of a body

part with respect to a fixed reference point.


Area swept out by movement of hand –
“workspace envelopes”
Functional anthropometric data

The figure shows the shapes of the reach envelopes and the al-
lowable (a) and preferred (p) zones for the placement of controls
in a workspace
Fewer functional than structural
anthropometric data are available even
though functional measures are more
representative of actual human activity.

Existing functional anthropometric data

are useful for designing workspace and
positioning object within them.
 Principles in the Application of
Anthropometric Data
Design for Extreme Individuals
In some circumstances a specific design
dimension or feature is a limiting factor
that might restrict the use of the facility for
some people.
That limiting factor can be dictate either a
maximum or minimum value of the
population variable or characteristics.
Designing for Adjustable Range
Certain features of equipment or facilities
can be designed so they can be adjusted
to the individuals who use them, e.g.
automobile seat, office chair, desk height
etc.
This method of design is a preferred
method, of course it is not always
possible.
Designing for Average
There is no average individual. A person
may be average on one or two body
dimensions but it is impossible to find
anyone who is average in many
dimensions.
Often designers design for the average as
a cop-out to avoid complexity of
anthropometric data.
 Designing to Fit the Body
Results of anthropometrics surveys are
described in statistical terms,
Most body data appear in normal
distribution:
 Mean,

Standard deviation,
 Range.
 Why Percentiles Important ?
1. To establish the portion of a user population
that will be included in (or excluded) from a
specific design solution,
2. Percentiles are easily used to select subjects
for fit tests, example 5th or 60th percentile
values in the critical dimensions can be
employed for use test,
3. Any body dimension, design issue or score of
a subject can be exactly located,
4. Helps in selection of persons to use a given
product. Example select cockpit crews whose
body measures are 5 – 95th percentile
 The normal distribution

Ninety percent of the measurements made on different people will fall

in a range whose width is 1.64 standard deviations above and below
the mean.
To Determine a Single Percentile Point
 Select desired percentile value,

 Determine the associated k value,


Calculate p value from:

p = m + k × SD
 Percentiles
Two ways to determine percentile values:
To take distribution of data and determine from the
graph critical percentile values,
Calculate percentile value by multiplying standard
deviation SD by a factor k then add the product to the
mean m:

p > 50th , k = + re
p = m + k × SD
p < 50th , k = −ve
 Questions 1

Calculate the 99th percentile of male

stature from the following table for
USA adults and Japanese adults.
Calculate percentage of men taller
than 1850mm.
 Question 2
Calculate the surface height of a keyboard
so that the sitting operator has the
forearms and wrists horizontal.
 Solution
Assumption:
having tops of the keyboard at sitting elbow
height will allow the operator to keep the wrists
straight, forearm horizontal and upper arms
effortless hanging down.
Select the percentile
Adjusting keyboard height for the 10th percentile
female elbow clearance to 90th percentile male
clearance will be appropriate.
 Solution
Listed (example of American
Anthropometry: elbow height above seat
pan female – mean 220.5.mm SD-26.8,
mean for male – 230.6mm SD -27.2mm)
Use the multiplication factor to calculate
for 10th and 90th given in the table below.
(10th and 90th = +/- 1.28 )
 Solution
(for 10th and 90th )
10 p the values are 186 mm female and
196 mm male.
90p the values are 265mm for male and
255 mm female.
Therefore the height of the keyboard
should be adjustable from 186mm to
265mm. Thus, the adjustable range is
79mm under given assumptions.
 Question 3
Calculate the surface height of a
keyboard so that the sitting
operator has the forearms and
wrists horizontal.

*Select the percentile for the 15th percentile

female elbow clearance to 85th percentile
male clearance.
 Missing Data
Ration scaling
Estimating data from known dimensions assumption –
Though people vary greatly in size. They are likely to be
similar in proportions.
Use only pairings of data that are related to each other
with a coefficient of correlation of least 0.7 (0.72 = 0.49 ~
50% variability of derived info determined by at least
50% variability of predictor),
If value of dimension in sample x (dx) and values of a
reference dimension D in both sample x and y (Dx and
Dy)
 Scaling factor E dx
E=
Dx
dx dy
∴ E= =
Dx Dy
dy = E × Dy
Example:
If shoulder height is to be estimated for sample y and
is known in sample x then:

shoulder height in x
E=
stature in x

∴Shoulder height in y = E × stature in y

Anthropometric Measured Data of U.S. Adults.
Anthropometric Measured Data of Japanese
Adults
Some product dimensions which are determined
using anthropometric considerations
Anthropometric Measured Data of East German Adults
Anthropometric Measured Data of British Adults
Common Anatomical and Anthropometric Landmarks
(Webb Associates, 1978)
 Example
Design a computer workstation to be used
by a clerk in an office work environment.
Three essential phases should be
emphasis for the solution:
- identification of the target population
- proposition of criteria
- application of the method of limits
What is your target population?
Most clerks are female (although may
change in the future)
Depends on organization
Government - tend to be older
Private - tend to be younger
You can propose your design on the
female data (Malaysian industrial workers)
 Criteria?
Chair

Computer table
 Where do we start?
Computer table ?
Adequate clearance must be provided
beneath the desk:
1) knee height above the floor or
2) thigh thickness above the height of the
seat
 Table Heights
The undersides of tables should
provide clearance of the thighs
and knees.
The correct height for the table
surface depends upon the task to
be performed upon it.
 Table Height
Determine what Percentile to use
Find the thigh thickness above the height
of the seat + popliteal height
Adding the shoes dimension (45 mm)
The optimum height for a seat is said to
be 25mm to 50mm below popliteal height
So the clearance required for the ??
percentile female /male is
Chair Height
 STEPS IN DESIGN FOR FITTING CLOTHING, TOOLS,
WORKSTATIONS, AND EQUIPMENT TO THE BODY
(Kroemer, Kroemer, Kroemer-Elbert 1994)

Step 1: Select those anthropometric measures that directly relate to

defined design dimensions. Exam-ples are: hand length related to handle
size; shoulder and hip breadth related to escape-hatch diameter; head
length and breadth related to helmet size; eye height related to the heights
of windows and displays; knee height and hip breadth related to the leg
room in a console.

Step 2: For each of these pairings, determine whether the design must fit
only one given percentile (minimal or maximal) of the body dimension. or a
range along that body dimension. Examples are: the escape hatch must be
big enough to accommodate the largest extreme value of shoulder breadth
and hip breadth. considering clothing and equipment worn; the handle size
of pliers is probably selected to fit a smallish hand; the leg room of a
console must accommodate the tallest knee heights; the height of a seat
should be adjustable to fit persons with short and with long lower legs.
Step 3: Combine all selected design values in a careful
drawing, mock-up, or computer model to ascertain that they
are compatible. For example, the required leg-room
clearance height needed for sitting persons with long lower
legs may be very close to the height of the working surface
determined from elbow height.

Step 4: Determine whether one design will fit all users. If

not, several sizes or adjustment must be provided to fit all
users. Examples are one extra-large bed size fits all
sleepers; gloves and shoes must come in different sizes;
seat heights are adjustable.
 Table 9.3 Guidelines for the Conversion of Standard Measuring
Postures to Real Work Conditions

Slumped standing or sitting: deduct 5-10% from appropriate height measurements

Relaxed trunk:
Wearing shoes:
Wearing light clothing:
Wearing heavy clothing:
Extended reaches:
Use of hand tools:
Forward bent head (and neck) posture:
Comfortable seat height:
add 5-10% to trunk circumferences and depths
add approximately 25 men to standing and
sitting heights; more for "high heels"
add about" 5% to appropriate dimensions
add 15% or more to appropriate dimensions
(Note that mobility may be strongly reduced
by heavy clothing.)
add 100/0 or more for strong motions of the trunk
Center of handle is at about 40% hand length.
measured from the wrist
ear-eye line close to horizontal
add or subtract up to 10% to or from standard
seat height

Adapted from Kroemer. Kroemer. and Kroemer-EIben (1997).

 DESIGNING FOR MOTION IS DONE IN THESE STEPS:

Step 1: Select the major body joints involved.

Step 2: Adjust body dimensions reported for
standardized postures (e.g., Tables 9.4 through 9.9) to
accommodate the real work conditions. Use Table 9.3 for
guidance.
Step 3: Select appropriate motion ranges in the body
joints. The range can be depicted as the area between
two positions, such as knee angles ranging between 60
and 105 degrees; or as a motion envelope, such as
circumscribed by combined hand-and-arm movements,
or by the clearance envelope under (through, within,
beyond) which body parts must fit. Use Table 9.12 for
guidance.
Basic work space design faults should be avoided. These include:
1. Avoid twisted body positions, especially of the trunk and neck.
This results often from bad location of work objects, controls, and
displays.

2. Avoid forward bending of trunk, neck, and head. This is frequently

provoked by improperly positioned controls and visual targets
including working surfaces that are too low.

3. Avoid postures that must be maintained for long periods of time,

especially at the extreme limits of the range of motion. This is
particularly important for the wrist and the back.

4. Avoid holding the arms raised. This results commonly from

locating controls or objects too high, higher than the elbow when the
upper arm hangs down. The upper limit for regular manipulation
tasks is about chest height.
Thank you