Design Of Hand Tools Research Articles

Ergonomic principles basic to hand tool design.

A survey of those features of hand tools relevant to the physical interaction between the implement and the human operator. Concepts basics to the optimization of forces are mentioned, followed by a description of some of the more common physiological problems and musculoskeletal complaints associated with improper hand tool and design and usage. An account of the distribution of contact pressures and possible consequences, if these are excessive, is followed by a description of the role of working gloves as related to ergonomic problems and their possible relationships to occupational diseases of the hand and wrist. Some aspects of anatomy and anthropometry pertinent to the optimization of posture, motion patterns and tool size precede a list of desirable features for power tools. A glossary is included as an aid to the reader. The concepts and situations described are applicable to the design and use of the vast majority of hand tools.

Workers and their tools: a guide to the ergonomic design of hand tools and small presses : Greenberg, L., and Chaffin, D.B.University of Michigan Monograph, July 1975, 193 pp

Workers and their tools: a guide to the ergonomic design of hand tools and small presses : Greenberg, L., and Chaffin, D.B.University of Michigan Monograph, July 1975, 193 pp

The Influence of Forearm and Wrist Orientation on Static Grip Strength as a Design Criterion for Hand Tools

The amount of force required to use a hand tool and its relationship to the user's capacity to exert this force is a critical design criterion of hand tools, often affecting the immediate safety of the tool user and the propensity of the tool to cause injury to the user with long-term use. Because the wrist is often placed in deviated positions, the available data on grip strength with an undeviated wrist configuration may not be applicable to the design of many hand tools. This study demonstrates the decreases in grip strength due to wrist deviations and forearm rotation. The position of maximal static grip strength is the neutral wrist with a supinated forearm. Decrements from the neutral position for wrist flexion, hyperextension, radial flexion and ulnar flexion are 30%, 22%, 18% and 15%, respectively. The pronated forearm allows only 87% of the strength of the supinated forearm, and the differences between the supinated and the midposition forearm are not significant.

Human Factors guide for the design of diver-operated hand and power tools (October 1969–June 1972) : Andersen, B.G. TRC Report No T73-05925 Jul. 1972, 49 pp. Abstr in R and D Abstracts.

Human Factors guide for the design of diver-operated hand and power tools (October 1969–June 1972) : Andersen, B.G. TRC Report No T73-05925 Jul. 1972, 49 pp. Abstr in R and D Abstracts.

The Metallic Woodworking Plane: An American Contribution to Hand-Tool Design

A curator in the Office of the Director of the Museum of History and Technology discusses an American contribution to hand tool design, the evolution of the metallic wood working plane. -- AATA