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Most human figure models used in ergonomic analyses present postural comfort ratings based on joint angles, and present a single comfort score for the whole body or on a joint-by-joint basis. The source data for these ratings is generally derived from laboratory studies that link posture to ratings. Lacking in many of these models is a thorough treatment of the distribution of ratings for the population of users. Information about ratings distributions is necessary to make cost-effective tradeoffs when design changes affect subjective responses. This paper presents experimental and analytic methods used to develop distribution models for incorporating subjective rating data in ergonomic assessments.

Intelligent Vehicle Highway System (IVHS) represents the application of information technology to improve the effectiveness of the existing road transportation system resulting in increased safety and better traffic management [1,2]. In-Vehicle Safety Advisory and Warning System (IVSAWS) Program is a Federal Highway Admisistration project to develop a system that provides drivers with advance notification of roadway hazards. IVSAWS units will provide supplemental warnings in order to ameliorate hazardous scenarios (e.g., railroad grade crossings, slow moving vehicles) which are particularly hazardous and have remained hazardous despite traditional crash reduction techniques such as additional mechanical signing. Program aspects include hazard scenario identification, system architecture design, driver alert warning subsystem design, communication subsystem design, and proof of concept field testing.

The effects of child safety seats have been well documented in the medical literature. Scattered throughout the medical literature are individual case reports of cervical injury to children restrained in child restraint systems. A review of the literature is provided identifying previous documented cases. The authors also provide new case details of children with cervical spine injury without head contact. An overview of the growth of the infant and specific details in the cervical spine that may contribute to significant cervical injury without head impact is presented.

The road damage caused by heavy trucks is accentuated by the dynamic loads excited by roughness in the road. Simulation models of trucks are used to predict dynamic wheel loads, but special models are required for tandem suspensions. Parameter values to characterize tandem suspension systems can be measured quasi-statically on a suspension measurement facility, but it is not known how well they fit dynamic models. The dynamic behavior of leaf-spring and air-spring tandem suspensions were measured on a hydraulic road simulator using remote parameter characterization techniques. The road simulator tests were duplicated with computer simulations of these suspensions based on quasi-static parameter measurements to compare dynamic load performance. In the case of the walking-beam suspension, simulated performance on the road was compared to experimental test data to evaluate the ability of the walking-beam model to predict dynamic load.

An appropriately contoured lumbar support is widely regarded as an essential component of a comfortable auto seat. A frequently stated objective for a lumbar support is to maintain the sitter's lumbar spine in a slightly extended, or lordotic, posture. Although sitters have been observed to sit with substantial lordosis in some short-duration testing, long-term postural interaction with a lumbar support has not been documented quantitatively in the automotive environment. A laboratory study was conducted to investigate driver posture with three seatback contours. Subjects† from four anthropometric groups operated an interactive laboratory driving simulator for one-hour trials. Posture data were collected by means of a sonic digitizing system. The data identify driver-selected postures over time for three lumbar support contours. An increase of 25 mm in the lumbar support prominence from a flat contour did not substantially change lumbar spine posture.

Data from the 1990 U.S. Nationwide Personal Transportation Survey were analyzed to determine the distribution of trip durations and sitting times for use in the design of automobile seat comfort studies. Two measures relating to the incidence and prevalence of long-term sitting were calculated and presented for the U.S. population and various subgroups. The information can be used to select an appropriate test duration for comfort studies. The subgroup data allow the test duration to be tailored for specific market segments.

A method has been developed to identify and document the locations of rib fractures from two-dimensional CT images obtained from occupants of crashes investigated in the Crash Injury Research Engineering Network (CIREN). The location of each rib fracture includes the vertical location by rib number (1 through 12), the lateral location by side of the thorax (inboard and outboard), and the circumferential location by five 36-degree segments relative to the sternum and spine. The latter include anterior, anterior-lateral, lateral, posterior-lateral, and posterior regions. 3D reconstructed images of the whole ribcage created from the 2D CT images using Voxar software are used to help identify fractures and their rib number. A geometric method for consistently locating each fracture circumferentially is described.

An easy-to-use computer program for ride analysis was recently developed. The result of this effort-RideSim- predicts time history responses, power spectral density (PSD) functions, and a driver oriented measure of ride comfort. RideSim employs a graphical user interface (called SGUI, for simulation graphical user interface) to control data preparation, simulation execution, animation, and data analysis. The SGUI allows the user to operate the program by pointing and clicking with a mouse, rather than by using cumbersome text commands. It also manages the vehicle dynamics parameters, the resulting simulation output, and results of post-processing analyses (i.e., PSD analysis). The vehicle dynamics model was generated with the AUTOSIM multibody dynamics program. This program uses Kane’s Method and computer algebra to create a parametric dynamics simulation that can be easily linked to the SGUI.

Almost a million people are killed worldwide each year in motor vehicle crashes, over 42,000 of them in the U.S. Human/driver error (or induced error) is the most commonly identified contributing cause according to crash studies, especially studies conducted in the U.S. Accordingly, if crashes are to be reduced, a human-centered approach is needed. As part of its Intelligent Transportation Systems program, the U.S. Department of Transportation (U.S. DOT) is funding several major projects (e.g., VII, IVBSS) concerned with active safety, warnings, and communications. As part of these and other projects, several meta-issues have arisen that deserve further attention.

Children who are too large for harness restraints but too small to obtain good restraint from a vehicle seatbelt alone should be seated in a belt-positioning booster. Boosters have been shown to significantly reduce abdominal injuries caused by seatbelts. This effectiveness may be due in part to the fact that boosters reduce the effective seat cushion length, allowing children to sit more comfortably without slouching. NHTSA recommends that children who do not use harness restraints use boosters until they are at least 145 cm tall. In this paper, data from several sources were combined to assess how well children fit on rear seat cushions. Data from NASS-GES were analyzed to determine the age distribution of rear-seat occupants. Anthropometric data from several sources were analyzed to determine the distribution of buttock-popliteal length, a measure of thigh length that is a key determinant of seat fit, as a function of age and gender.

Electrochromic rearview mirrors can provide continuous levels of reflectivity and unobtrusive, automatic control. The availability of this technology has increased the importance of understanding how to select the best level of reflectivity for a given set of lighting conditions. For night driving with glare from following headlights, the best reflectivity level will always depend on a tradeoff among several variables. This study was designed to help clarify what variables are important and how they should be quantified. Twenty subjects, 10 younger and 10 older, performed a number of visual tasks while viewing stimuli through an electrochromic rearview mirror. Subjects were seated in an automobile mockup in a laboratory, and the reflectivity level of the mirror was changed before each of a series of discrete trials. On each trial, subjects saw reflected in the mirror a visual-acuity stimulus and a glare source of varying intensity.