Seating comfort analysis: a virtual ergonomics study of bus drivers in private transportation

Abstract

Background: Seating comfort is one of the most important indicators of the performance of automotive seats. Seat is one of the places in the vehicle where most of the drivers spent driving. A good seat can prevent a lot of painful disorders including low back pain, which is typical of bad posture. Driver posture is one of the most important issues that need to be considered in the vehicle seat design process. Research Gap: Around the world, there have been many studies on seating comfort including car seats, truck seats, bus seats, train seats, etc. However, in India there are not many studies focusing on bus drivers seating comfort. Objective: This study aimed at investigating bus drivers seating comfort in private transportation using virtual ergonomics. Methods: We have considered a group of male bus drivers with different percentiles. And, we have selected a bus seat typically used in private transportation. The anthropometry of drivers and dimensions of the seat has been measured and modelled in the virtual environment (CATIA V6). For the seating comfort analysis, RULA (Rapid Upper Limb Assessment) analysis was performed. Results and Discussion: The RULA score revealed that the drivers with 77th to 94th percentile felt comfortable with the seat. The rest had higher RULA scores and felt discomfort. Conclusion: The bus seat design needs to be changed by considering Indian anthropometry. Also, this study only examined a few subjects; hence, further investigation would give better recommendations. Application: The benefit of virtual ergonomics is used in this project. The methodology used in this study could be used for other seat studies.