Biodynamics of supine humans and interaction with transport systems during vibration and shocks

Abstract

This work investigates the effect of the contact surfaces on the biomechanical response of supine humans during whole-body vibration and shocks. Twelve participants were exposed to three-dimensional random vibration and shocks and were tested with two types of contact surfaces: (i) litter only, and (ii) litter with spinal board. The two configurations were tested with and without body straps to secure the supine human. The addition of the spinal board reduced the involuntary motion of the supine humans in most directions. There were significant reductions in the relative vertical accelerations at the neck and torso areas, especially during shocks ( p < 0.01). The inclusion of body straps with the spinal board was more effective in reducing the relative motion in most directions when shocks were presented. This study shows that the ergonomic design of the human transport system and the underlying contacting surfaces should be studied during dynamic transport environments.