DESIGNING FOR WORKING

POSITIONS OTHER THAN

SITTING OR STANDING
CHAPTER 8
SEMISITTING
- Is one example of a working posture that is neither sitting nor standing.In many cases, other
postures must be assumed at work although often on the briefly such as reaching to a barely
accessible object, stooping in a low ceilinged compartment or straining to perform repair work
inside narrow opening.
AWKWARD POSTURES
- Low- seam mining is notorious for requiring bent, stooped, kneeling .and even crawling and
lying working postures from the miners ( Gallagher, 1999). In the building and consruction trades,
bent and twisted body postures are frequent as Buchholz et al.(1996 )Helander (1981) and
Schinider and Susi (1994 )described.
AVOID AWKWARD POSTURES
- First, it must be established whether or not such postures are indeed necessary. If not, better
solution for the work can be found that no longer include them. If the postures in question
cannot be avoided special body supports must be designed; for example, military standards and
specification described the body supports of tank crews and of pilots in fighter aircraft. Helander
(1981) has compiled recommendations for the constructions industry.
- Semireclining chair for overhead task has been proposed by Lee et al (1991).
WORK IN RESTRICTED SPACES
- The primary restrictions usually lies in the lowered ceiling the works space. Work becomes
more difficult and stressful as the ceiling height forces workers to bend their neck and backs, or
requires squatting and even lying. Thus if work must be done in low-ceilinged spaces, equipment
and mechanical aids should be developed that alleviate the task for example in aircraft baggage
handling, it is advantagous the first collect the luggage in containers and then foot these in place
withi the cargo hold rather than handling individual pieces.
OTHER RESTRICTED SPACES ARE
PASSAGE WAYS, WALK AWAYS
HALLWAYS AND CORRIDORS.
MINIMAL DIMENSIONS FOR
THESE ARE GIVEN IN FIGURE 8-
13. DIMENSIONS FOR TIGHT
PLACES, WHERE ONE MAY HAVE
TO SQUAT, KNEEL OR LIE ON THE
BACK OR BELLY ARE GIVEN IN
FIGURE 8-14 AND TABLE 8-2.
THESE OPENINGS CAN BE MADE
SOMEWHAT SMALLER FOR
MAINTENANCE WORKERS WHO NEED
TO GET THROUGH ACCESS IN
OPENINGS AND ENCLOSURES. OF
MACHINERY; RECOMMENDED
DIMENSIONS ARE SHOWN IN FIGURE
8-16. THE SIZE FOR OPENINGS
THROUGH WHICH ONE HAND MUST
PASS, HOLDING AND OPERATING
TOOL, DEPENDS ON THE GIVEN
CIRCUMSTANCES , YET SOME
RECOMMENDED DIMENSIONS ARE
SHOWN IN FIGURE 8-17.
DESIGNING FOR FOR FOOT OPERATION
CHAPTER 8

- If a person stands at work fairly little force and fairly infrequent operations of foot controls should be
required, because duting these extensions, the oparator has to stand on the other leg alone . For a seated
operator, however the operation of foot controls is much easier because the body is Largely supported by
the seat. Thus, the feet can move more freely an given suitable conditions can exert latge forces and
energies.
BICYCLING
All energy is transmitted from the leg muscles through the feet to pedals. The pedals should be
located directly underneath the body. So that the body weight above provides the reactive force
to force transmitted to pedals.
TERRIBLE PEDALS IN AUTOS
The traditional arrangement of foot controls in the automobile is by all human factors rules,
atrocious: the gas pedal requirements that the foot bekept in same positions over long periods
of time, and thebrake pedal must be reached by a complex and time consuming motion of the
foot. From the gas toward the body, to the left or right depending on which side of the car the
driver’s seat is on and then again forward.
 IN AUTOMOBILES, POWER
ASSISTED BRAKES AND
STEERING SYSTEMS GENERATE
A DIFFICULT DESIGN PROBLEM.
AS LONG AS AUXILIARY POWER
IS AVAILABLE, BRAKES CAN
BEOPERATED EASILY IN ALMOST
ANY CONCEIVABLE LEG
POSTURE.
RULES FOR DESIGNING FOOT CONTROLS
1. Require rpeated operation only from a seated operator.
2. Design for pushing roughly in the direction of the lower leg.
3. Hva ethe person exert small forces by tilting the foot above the ankle.
4. Have the person applied large forces by pushing with the whole leg preferably with a solid
back support from the Seat.
5. Do not require fine control, continous operations or quick movements. ( Note howevr, that all
of these are foolishly expected for speed control in today’s automobile.)