Predicting preferred motorcycle riding postures to support human factors/ergonomic trade-off analyses within a multi-objective optimisation-based digital human model.

Digital human models (DHM) can predict how users might interact with new vehicle geometry during early-stage design, an important precursor to conducting trade-off analyses. However, predicting human postures requires assumptions about which performance criteria best predict realistic postures. Focusing on the design of motorcycles, we do not know what performance criteria drive preferred riding postures.

Determining whether biomechanical variables that describe common 'safe lifting' cues are associated with low back loads.

Lift technique training programs have been implemented to help reduce injury risk, but the underlying content validity of cues used within these programs is not clear. The objective of this study was to determine whether biomechanical variables, that commonly used lifting cues aim to elicit, are associated with resultant low back extensor moment exposures. A sample of 72 participants were recruited to perform 10 repetitions of a floor-to-waist height barbell lift while whole-body kinematics and ground reaction forces were collected.

Exploring Optimal Objective Function Weightings to Predict Lifting Postures Under Unfatigued and Fatigued States.

Objective: To explore whether the optimal objective function weightings change when using a digital human model (DHM) to predict origin and destination lifting postures under unfatigued and fatigued states.

Background: The ability to predict human postures can depend on state-based influences (e.g.

Multi-task exposure assessment to infer musculoskeletal disorder risk: A scoping review of injury causation theories and tools available to assess exposures.

Exposure assessment is critical for understanding musculoskeletal disorder (MSD) risk. Previous reviews summarized the tools available for single-task exposure assessment, however no reviews summarize tools available to assess the accumulation or aggregation of exposure associated with the performance of multiple tasks (i.e.

The influence of sex and strength capacity on normalized low-back exposure during lifting: Insights from a joint power analysis.

Objective: Investigate the influence of sex, strength capacity, and relative load mass on low-back exposure and lower extremity joint power generation in backboard lifting.

Background: Sex and strength have been shown to influence lifting strategy, but without load mass being scaled to strength it is unknown which factor influences low-back exposures, and whether there are interactions with load mass.

Methods: Motion capture and force plate data from 28 participants were collected during backboard lifting at load masses scaled to strength capacity.

A response surface methodology to determine the optimal objective function weightings within a multi-objective optimization digital human model used to predict postures.

Multi-objective optimization digital human models permit users to predict postures that follow performance criteria, such as minimizing torques. Currently, it is unknown how to weight different objective functions to best predict postures. Objective one was to describe a response surface method to determine optimal objective function weightings to predict lift postures.

Improving human-in-the-loop simulation to optimize soldier-systems integration.

Objective: To identify requirements for human-in-the-loop simulation capabilities and improve their utility in predicting and optimizing soldier-systems integration.

Background: Technological development rates within the military are rapidly increasing. Emergent technologies often exclude in-depth consideration of human-system interactions until the physical prototyping phase.