Designing a web-based automatic ergonomic assessment using motion data

Abstract

Manual laborers from the industry sector are often subject to critical physical strain that lead to work-related musculoskeletal disorders. Lifting, poor posture and repetitive movements are among the causes of these disorders. In order to prevent them, several rules and methods have been established to identify ergonomic risks that the worker might be exposed during his/her activities. However, the ergonomic assessment though these methods is not a trivial task and a relevant degree of theoretical knowledge on the part of the analyst is necessary. Therefore in this paper, a web-based automatic ergonomic assessment module is proposed. The proposed module uses segment rotations acquired from inertial measurement units for the assessment and provides as feedback RULA scores, color visualisation and limb angles in a simple, intuitive and meaningful way. RULA is one of the most used observational methods for assessment of occupational risk factors for upper-extremity musculoskeletal disorders. By automatizing RULA an interesting perspective for extracting posture analytics for ergonomic assessment is opened, as well as the inclusion of new features that may complement it. For future work, the use of other features and sensors will be investigated for its implementation on the module.

Development of a Digital Video-Based Occupational Risk Assessment Method

“…A further challenge is then to implement automatic algorithms for the analysis of the video recordings so that the workplace characteristics will be automatically translated into matrices, also including sensor data of exposure to hazardous substances. After having met these challenges, future work can focus on the automatic generation of summary scores and creating algorithms for automated risk assessment based on different techniques such as the aforementioned Task Demand Assessment ( 30 ) or the Rapid Entire Body Assessment ( 15 ) for an available video recorded work sequence, similar to Padilla et al ( 38 ). This will facilitate a complex but necessary process of risk assessment in every company that is required to be completed regularly by law.…”

Development and Validation of a Wearable Inertial Sensors-Based Automated System for Assessing Work-Related Musculoskeletal Disorders in the Workspace

“…Our RULA/REBA-based postural ergonomic assessment tool provides several attractive features compared to similar systems reported in previous studies [38,40]. It can provide not only the grand RULA/REBA score and corresponding color-coded WMSD risk level, but also real-time sub-sectional scores for each body segment, which can help to broaden understanding and locate the potentially problematic body segment to gain more insights for preventing WMSDs.…”

“…Researchers also proposed automated WMSD risk assessment utilizing computer vision-based motion capture data as input for various methods such as OWAS [34], RULA [35], biomechanical modeling [36], biomechanical analysis [9], and joint-level workload evaluation [37]. Nevertheless, these methods were not free from concerns on applicability, majorly due to the low accuracy [38] typically found in a cluttered work environment with complex working postures. To overcome the aforementioned disadvantages of optical and vision-based motion capture, the wearable inertial sensors-based system [39][40][41] has been proposed as an alternative.…”

Evaluating the Ergonomics of Surgical Residents During Laparoscopic Simulation: A Novel Computerized Approach

“…Automated programs to evaluate ergonomics, however, have been shown to be both accurate and easy to use. 19,20…”

“…Automated programs to evaluate ergonomics, however, have been shown to be both accurate and easy to use. 19,20 Like all aspects of surgery, fundamental knowledge and skill begins in training. While surgical residency is focused on teaching technical skills, with national expectation standards in terms of laparoscopic proficiency and case volume, 21 there is little to no instruction or evaluation of surgical ergonomics.…”