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Muscle activity and spinal loading in lifting symmetrical loads beside the body compared to in front of the body

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Abstract

Digital human modeling enables engineers in product development to address questions of ergonomics and human factors early on in the development. To build more accurate Digital human models (DHMs), the physiological standard reference data are necessary. We investigated the effects of lifting loads beside the body compared to in front of the body. Forty healthy subjects performed eight lifting tasks with combinations of two postures, and four loads. The magnitude of the erector spinae muscle activity: Median frequency (MF) and Normalized root-mean-square (N-RMS) was estimated using surface electromyography. The magnitude of the lumbar spinal loads about lumbar vertebrae was estimated using DHM software. The effect of the moment arms (5, 6, 7.5 and 8.5 cm) on the lumbar spinal loads was estimated biomechanically. Lifting loads beside the body significantly (p < 0.01) reduced the muscle fatigue, muscle activity, and spinal loads. The increased moment arms resulted in the reduction of compression (5-13%) and muscle force (16-41%). The result presented in this study could be used to build more accurate DHMs.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Mechanical Engineering, Chungnam National University, Daejeon, 305-764, Korea

    Murali Subramaniyam & Sangho Park

  2. Center for Medical Metrology, Korea Research Institute of Standards and Science, Daejeon, 305-340, Korea

    Murali Subramaniyam & Se Jin Park

  3. Department of Fire Safety Management, Shinsung University, Chungcheongnam-do, 343-861, Korea

    Seung Nam Min

Authors
  1. Murali Subramaniyam
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  2. Seung Nam Min
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  3. Se Jin Park
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  4. Sangho Park
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Correspondence to Sangho Park.

Additional information

Recommended by Guest Editor Sangho Park

Murali Subramaniyam is pursuing his Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering at Chungnam National University (CNU), and is a research scientist at the Center for Medical Metrology at Korea Research Institute of Standards and Science (KRISS). His research interests include biomechanics, digital human modeling (DHM), ergonomics and human factors.

Seung Nam Min received his Ph.D. in Industrial Engineering from Hanyang University, Korea in 2012. He is an Assistant Professor at Shinsung University, South Korea. His research interests include ergonomics, industrial safety and fire safety.

Se Jin Park received his Ph.D. in Industrial Engineering from Korea University, Korea in 1994. He is Head of Data Center for Korean Body Measurement at KRISS. His research interests include human factors, human sensibility, biomechanics and human computer Interaction.

Sangho Park is a Professor in the School of Mechanical Engineering at CNU. He received his Ph.D. from Seoul National University, Korea in 1995. He was a Senior Research Scientist at ETRI (Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute), Korea. His areas of expertise and research interest include mechanical design and manufacturing.

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Subramaniyam, M., Min, S.N., Park, S.J. et al. Muscle activity and spinal loading in lifting symmetrical loads beside the body compared to in front of the body. J Mech Sci Technol 29, 5075–5081 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12206-015-1104-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12206-015-1104-z

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