Abstract
Many jobs and tasks involve hand control requiring large forces, awkward positions and/or high repetition rates which may lead to upper limb injury or illness. The operation of commercial lawn mowing machines involves a combination of these factors for actuation of hand controls and therefore may pose a safety concern for the operators. A nontraditional control system currently implemented on a commercially-available lawn mower may reduce some of the precursors for upper limb illness or injury due to hand and body positioning. This preliminary study compared maximum grip strength in nine different orientations (combinations of 3 different grip spans and 3 different positions). The results showed that there was a difference between the three different grip spans (p < 0.0001) and a difference between positions (p < 0.0001). The position of the nontraditional control system and the smallest grip span (6.3cm) facilitated the highest grip forces. Further investigation is required to better understand the impact on users of repetitive actuation in these orientations specifically while mowing.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society |
| Pages | 1932-1936 |
| Number of pages | 5 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 2012 |
| Externally published | Yes |
| Event | Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 56th Annual Meeting, HFES 2012 - Boston, MA, United States Duration: Oct 22 2012 → Oct 26 2012 |
Other
| Other | Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 56th Annual Meeting, HFES 2012 |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| City | Boston, MA |
| Period | 10/22/12 → 10/26/12 |
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ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Human Factors and Ergonomics
Cite this
Hand actuation strength : A preliminary evaluation of physical demand in a nontraditional lawn mowing control system. / Lowndes, Bethany R.; Thrailkill, Elizabeth A.; Hallbeck, Susan.
Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society. 2012. p. 1932-1936.Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Conference contribution
}
TY - GEN
T1 - Hand actuation strength
T2 - A preliminary evaluation of physical demand in a nontraditional lawn mowing control system
AU - Lowndes, Bethany R.
AU - Thrailkill, Elizabeth A.
AU - Hallbeck, Susan
PY - 2012
Y1 - 2012
N2 - Many jobs and tasks involve hand control requiring large forces, awkward positions and/or high repetition rates which may lead to upper limb injury or illness. The operation of commercial lawn mowing machines involves a combination of these factors for actuation of hand controls and therefore may pose a safety concern for the operators. A nontraditional control system currently implemented on a commercially-available lawn mower may reduce some of the precursors for upper limb illness or injury due to hand and body positioning. This preliminary study compared maximum grip strength in nine different orientations (combinations of 3 different grip spans and 3 different positions). The results showed that there was a difference between the three different grip spans (p < 0.0001) and a difference between positions (p < 0.0001). The position of the nontraditional control system and the smallest grip span (6.3cm) facilitated the highest grip forces. Further investigation is required to better understand the impact on users of repetitive actuation in these orientations specifically while mowing.
AB - Many jobs and tasks involve hand control requiring large forces, awkward positions and/or high repetition rates which may lead to upper limb injury or illness. The operation of commercial lawn mowing machines involves a combination of these factors for actuation of hand controls and therefore may pose a safety concern for the operators. A nontraditional control system currently implemented on a commercially-available lawn mower may reduce some of the precursors for upper limb illness or injury due to hand and body positioning. This preliminary study compared maximum grip strength in nine different orientations (combinations of 3 different grip spans and 3 different positions). The results showed that there was a difference between the three different grip spans (p < 0.0001) and a difference between positions (p < 0.0001). The position of the nontraditional control system and the smallest grip span (6.3cm) facilitated the highest grip forces. Further investigation is required to better understand the impact on users of repetitive actuation in these orientations specifically while mowing.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84873420084&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=84873420084&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1177/1071181312561283
DO - 10.1177/1071181312561283
M3 - Conference contribution
SN - 9780945289418
SP - 1932
EP - 1936
BT - Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society
ER -