A Variable Parameter Single Degree-of-freedom Model for Predicting the Effects of Sitting Posture and Vibration Magnitude on the Vertical Apparent Mass of the Human Body

Abstract

Models of the vertical apparent mass of the human body are mostly restricted to a sitting posture unsupported by a backrest and ignore the variations in apparent mass associated with changes in posture and changes in the magnitude of vibration. Using findings from experimental research, this study fitted a single degree-of-freedom lumped parameter model to the measured vertical apparent mass of the body measured with a range of sitting postures and vibration magnitudes. The resulting model reflects the effects of reclining a rigid backrest or reclining a foam backrest (from 0 to 30 degrees), the effects of moving the hands from the lap to a steering wheel, the effects of moving the horizontal position of the feet, and the effects of vibration magnitude (from 0.125 to 1.6 ms(-2) r.m.s.). The error between the modelled and the measured apparent mass was minimised, for both the apparent masses of individual subjects and the median apparent masses of groups of 12 subjects, for each sitting posture and each vibration magnitude. Trends in model parameters, the damping ratios, and the damped natural frequencies were identified as a function of the model variables and show the effects of posture and vibration magnitude on body dynamics. For example, contact with a rigid backrest increased the derived damped natural frequency of the principal resonance as a result of reduced moving mass and increased stiffness. When the rigid backrest was reclined from 0 to 30º, the damping decreased and the resonance frequency increased as a result of reduced moving mass. It is concluded that, by appropriate variations in model parameters, a single degree-of-freedom model can provide a useful fit to the vertical apparent mass of the human body over a wide range of postures and vibration magnitudes. When measuring or modelling seat transmissibility, it may be difficult to justify an apparent mass model with more than a single degree-of-freedom if it does not reflect the large influences of vibration magnitude, body posture, and individual variability.