Designing to

Fit the Moving

Body
2 “Our body is said
to move about, not
to remain still”

3 Catergories of Body Postures:

o Lying
o Sitting
o Standing
 1. Designing for the
Standing Operator

3
 Humans are designed to stand
on two legs, but they are not
designed to stand still.

4
”
5 Designing for Standing Operator

▹ Standing is used as a working posture if sitting is not suitable,

either because very large forces must be exerted with hands or
because the operator has to cover a fairly large work area.

▹ Standing is the position of choice for many tasks in industry but it

can lead to discomfort if insufficient rest is provided or if
unnecessary postural load is placed on the body.
6 Designing for Standing Operator
7 Designing for Standing Operator
8 Designing for Standing Operator

Short periods of walking and gross body movements are vital to activate
the venous pump and assist the return of blood from the lower limbs, so
the idea that workers should stand still is physiologically and
mechanically unacceptable.

Prolonged daily standing is known to be associated with low back pain.

Where possible, jobs that require people to stand still for prolonged
periods without some external form of aid or support must be redesigned
to allow more movement or to allow the work to be done in a combination
of standing and sitting postures.
 Design for standing workers
9

As a rule of thumb, all objects that

are to be used by standing workers
should be placed between hip and
shoulder height to minimize postural
stress caused by stooping or
working with the hands and arms
elevated.
 Design for standing workers
10

Work surface heights should

approximate the standing elbow height
of workers, depending on the task –
when carrying out fine work, a higher
work surface is appropriate to reduce
the visual distance and allow the
worker to stabilize the forearms by
resting them on the work surface.
 Design for standing workers
11

When carrying out heavy work, a lower

work surface is needed to permit the
worker to apply large vertical forces by
transmitting part of the body weight
through the arms.
 Design for standing workers
12

*These should only be taken as a guide because the actual

working height depends on the size of the work objects and
the user population.
 Design for standing workers
13
Some workspace design faults that increase postural stress in standing
workers can be summarized as follows:

1. Working with the hands too high and/or too far away: compensatory
lumbar lordosis.
2. Work surface too low: trunk flexion and back muscle strain.
3. Constrained foot position due to lack of clearance: worker stands too far
away.
4. Working at the corner of the bench: constrained foot position, toes turned
out too much.
5. Standing with a twisted spine having to work at the side rather than
directly ahead.
 Design for standing workers
14

Postural constraint in standing workers

can be relieved by providing stools to
enable workers to rest during quiet
periods or to alternate between sitting and
standing. Adequate space for the feet
should be provided to permit workers to
change the position of their feet at will.
 Design for standing workers
15
Evaluation of standing aids

Several researchers have investigated the effects of standing

aids on comfort and fatigue in standing.

 Footrests and foot rails

The footrest raised the resting foot 250 mm above the level of
the floor and resulted in a net posterior rotation of the pelvis
of 4–6 degrees.
The use of a footrail reduced anterior pelvic tilt, straightened
the supporting leg and increased the plantar flexion of the
supporting foot. The footrest would appear to be a valid way
of reducing lumbo-pelvic constraint in standing workers and
help prevent discomfort in the lumbopelvic region.
 Design for standing workers
16

▹‘Anti-fatigue mats’
Mats do not seem to reduce lower leg fatigue
although they do reduce discomfort in the lower leg,
feet and back and muscle fatigue in the erector
spinae muscles.

▹Compression stockings

The wearing of compression stockings bought

about a significant reduction in leg swelling and
in complaints
 Design for standing workers
17
▹Toespace
Panels or obstructions in front of benches
cause users to stand farther away from the
worksurface. The postural adaptation is for
people to bend forwards.
▹Toespace can prevent this from
happening.Figure 4.10b shows a production
line designed to provide standing workers
with a choice of comfortable standing and
sit-standing work positions.
 2. Designing for the
Sitting Operator

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19 Designing for Sitting Operator

Sitting is a much less strenuous posture than standing, mostly because it

requires fewer muscles to be contracted to stabilize the body, which, in
turn, is largely due to the support that the body enjoys at its midsection
through the seat pan and seat back.

Sitting allows better-controlled hand movements, but coverage is of a

smaller area, and the hands exert less force.

Some persons who sit at work complain of low back pain and foot
swelling. Usually because the same posture has been maintained for a
long time.
 Design for Seated Workers
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 Design for Seated Workers
21

In designing a work station

for seated operator, one must
consider in particular the free
space required by the legs
and feet.

The preferred working area in

in front of the body, at about
elbow height with the upper
arm hanging.
 Design for Seated Workers
22

Seat height should range from

35 to 50 cm, and is determined
by the design of the seat pan,
backrest, material and
adjustability.
 Design for Seated Workers
23
▹Lumbar Support
Supports the lower region of the back
Promotes proper posture
Minimizes the load on the lower back

▹Chair with a waterfall edge

Results in termination of seat in back of thigh or lower leg
Prevents the obstruction of the blood flow to the lower
extremities

▹Armrest
Adjustable, compatible with task performance

▹Slightly tilted seat pan

Promotes proper posture, particularly in the lower back
 Design for Seated Workers
24
Key features of chair design:

1.Seats should swivel and have heights adjustable between 38 and 54

cm. Footrests should be provided for short users.
2. Free space for the legs must be provided both underneath the seat to
allow the user to flex the knees by 90 degrees or more and underneath
the work surface to allow knee extension when reclining.
3. A 5-point base is recommended for stability if the chair has castors.
4. The function of the backrest is to stabilize the trunk. A backrest
height of approximately 50 cm above the seat is required to provide
both lumbar and partial thoracic support.
5. If the backrest reclines, it should do so independently of the seat to
provide trunk–thigh angle variation and consequent variation in the
distribution of forces acting on the lumbar–pelvic region.
 Design for Seated Workers
25
6. Lumbar support can be achieved either by using extra cushioning to form a lumbar
pad, or by contouring the backrest. In either case, there must be open space between
the lumbar support and the seat pan vertically below it to allow for posterior protrusion
of the buttocks.
7. The seat pan must have a slight hollow in the buttock area to prevent the user’s
pelvis from sliding forwards. This keeps the lower back in contact with the backrest
when reclining. The leading edge of the seat should curl downwards to reduce under
thigh pressure.
8. Arm rests should be high enough to support the forearms when the user is sitting
erect.They should also end well short of the leading edge of the seat so as not to
contact the front edge of the desk. If the armrests support the weight of the arms, less
load is placed on the lumbar spine.
9. Modern chairs tend to have a thin layer of high-density padding. Layers of thick
foam tend to destabilise the sitter. The foam can collapse after constant use.
10. Cloth upholstery provides friction to enhance the stability of the sitter.
 3. Designing for Working Positions
Other than Sitting or Standing

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27 Designing for Working Positions other than Sitting or Standing

Some jobs, though, habitually require bent, stooped,

and twisted working positions- for example, loading
and unloading luggage of aircraft passengers, both
behind the check-in counter and in aircraft cargo hold.
 Designing for Working Positions other than Sitting or Standing
28

Semisitting
29
 Designing for Working Positions
30 other than Sitting or Standing

Work in Restricted Spaces

Passageways
Walkways
Hallways
Corridors
 Designing for Working Positions other than Sitting or Standing
31
Work in Restricted Spaces

Dimensions for tight spaces, where

one may have to squat, kneel, or lie
on the back or belly
 Designing for Working Positions
32 other than Sitting or Standing

Work in Restricted Spaces

Dimensions for escape hatches

 Designing for Working Positions other than Sitting or Standing
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34 Designing for Working Positions other than Sitting or Standing