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Overexertion injuries comprise the largest category of nonfatal injuries among construction workers. These injuries typically occur when the biomechanical stresses associated with tasks such as lifting, carrying, pushing, etc., exceed the worker’s strength capacity. Two studies were conducted to measure the whole-body isometric strength capability of 56 construction workers. The first study examined the effect of four typical postures (2 symmetric lifts and 2 asymmetric lifts) associated with scaffold end frame disassembly. The effect of posture on isometric strength capability was significant; the strength capability ranged from 366 N to 676 N. The second study evaluated the effect of hand separation distance (46 cm, 86.4 cm, and 116.8 cm) and vertical hand placement (knuckle, elbow, and acromial heights) on isometric force during symmetric lifting postures. The interaction effect of hand separation distance - vertical hand placement on isometric strength capability was significant.

Pedestrians account for a significant ratio of traffic fatalities; as a result, research on methods of reducing vehicle-pedestrian crashes is of importance. In this paper, we describe a system architecture that allows the use of vehicle-to-pedestrian (V2P) communication as a means of generating situational awareness and eventually predicting hazards and warning drivers and pedestrians. In contrast, vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) and vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) communication for safety applications, V2P has not received much attention. One major reason for this lack of attention had been the unavailability of communication mechanisms between pedestrians and vehicles. Recent advances in enabling Wi-Fi and dedicated short range communication (DSRC) based communication using smart-phones is changing this picture. As a result, V2P communication can be considered as a possible solution.