Anthropometric Considerations
Anthropometrics is th
e study of the
physical characteristics of an individual, specifically the
height, weight, length and proportion of each of their body
parts, to understand and take into account physical variation
when evaluating and designing products.
A comprehensive collection of articles will soon accompany
this section of the ErgoPedia and are under final
review. In the interim, here is a list of key pieces of
information that are often relevant, and sometimes crucial,
when considering options.
BODY CONSIDERATIONS
Distance from the elbows and eyes to the ground when
sitting at the proper height and when standing.
- This will provide the correct
height for both input (i.e. the worksurface) and output (i.e.the
monitor) for both sitting and standing applications.
Distance between the shoulders i.e. the breadth of the
individual, and the relative length of the forearms of the
individual.
- This will indicate the degree to
which reaching into
midline
will result in
elbow
abduction.
ARM CONSIDERATIONS
Reach of the Arm (usually largely determined by arm length).
- This is critical in determining
the
Comfort
Zone of the individual.
HAND CONSIDERATIONS
Length and width of the hand.
- This will provide an important
guide to which mice may be more or less appropriate for the
individual.
Finger Flexibility and Range of Movement.
- This will provide an important
guide to which input devices may be more or less appropriate for
the individual.
Handedness i.e. is the individual Right-Handed,
Left-Handed or Mixed-Handed.
- Individuals who are mixed-handed
(or capable of training themselves to do specific tasks with
their non-dominant hand) will have far more options when
considering ergonomic alternatives than those who always have
the same dominant hand for all tasks.
