Models to predict the force to operate front foldable rollover protective structures for narrow-track tractors

Franceschetti, Bruno Maria; Rondelli, Valda

doi:10.1016/j.biosystemseng.2019.06.003

Cited by 7 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 11 publications

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“…Previous studies aiming to promote the comfortable and safe handling of rear-mounted FROPS resorted mainly to technical engineering approaches to develop mechanical solutions [32,33] to ensure the clearance zone is not infringed during strength tests and protect the operator in case of roll-over [12,34,35]. Although the ergonomic issues during FROPS operations have increasingly received attention [8,34], few previous studies stressed the role of anthropometric variability in determining the quality of the human-FROPS interaction; these studies highlighted the need for some redesign to enhance comfort and safe use, especially for shorter operators who are adopting awkward postures and unsafe climbing behaviours when handling the roll-bar [16,17].…”

Section: State Of the Art Regarding Frops Manual Handling Requirements And Aim Of The Present Studymentioning

confidence: 99%

Considering Human Variability in the Design of Safe Interaction with Agricultural Machinery: The Case of Foldable Roll-Over Protective Structure (FROPS) Manual Handling

et al. 2021

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The foldable roll-over protective structure (FROPS) protects the operators against fatal injuries in tractor roll-over accidents. However, a rear-mounted FROPS is often folded down or removed. In the present study, the accessible zones and grasping areas in a rear-mounted FROPS were redesigned and adapted to the 5th, 50th, and 95th European human anthropometric percentiles to enhance its correct and comfortable use. Then, a rod was proposed as a design solution to make the roll-bar grasping areas fall within the new accessible zones. The rod prototype increased roll-bar reachability and facilitated the raising handling, especially for shorter users. The present study results and the accessible zones redesigned, taking into account the human percentiles, will be helpful in rethinking reachability issues in manual handling of machinery components, to support the correct behaviours, and make human-machine interaction more comfortable and safer for all.

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Section: State Of the Art Regarding Frops Manual Handling Requirements And Aim Of The Present Studymentioning

confidence: 99%

Considering Human Variability in the Design of Safe Interaction with Agricultural Machinery: The Case of Foldable Roll-Over Protective Structure (FROPS) Manual Handling

et al. 2021

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“…In this study, a computer-based ROPS design program was developed and tested via the design of three different types of structures. Additionally, studies dealing with the safety characteristics of the actuation force of different foldable two-post ROPS [77] and the design of a falling-object protective structure (FOPS) integrating an existing two-post rear ROPS [78] were included in the stream S.2.…”

Section: Protective Systemsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Safety Vision of Agricultural Tractors: An Engineering Perspective Based on Recent Studies (2009–2019)

Fargnoli

Lombardi

2019

Safety

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The high rate of injuries occurring in agricultural activities is of major concern in most countries, despite the ever-increasing efforts made at normative levels. In particular, the use of agricultural tractors is recognized as the most hazardous activity for farmers due to the large number of fatalities occurring every year. The aim of the present study was to investigate the recent developments in research activities dealing with tractor safety. For this purpose, a systematic literature review was carried out, taking into account engineering journal papers appearing in Scopus in the 2009–2019 period and focusing on tractor safety. As a result, 79 documents were selected and analyzed based on both their type (e.g., conceptual or empirical studies) and specific targets. They were then classified and discussed in accordance with a reference framework representing the main issues of agricultural tractor safety: mechanical hazards, protective devices, command and control, other hazards, ergonomics, information, conformity, and user behavior. The results of this analysis brought to light the need for a more human-centered approach when dealing with tractor safety. In addition, the lack of a reliable framework of technical standards was also stressed. Overall, despite the limitations due to the selection criteria, this study represents the first systematic literature review depicting the status of tractor safety in the engineering field, providing a basis for further research on the emerging themes outlined.

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“…They argued that to be in compliance with these limits it is necessary to apply at least a partial assistance device to reduce the operator's required force. This problem was outlined also by Franceschetti and Rondelli [31], who analyzed six two-post FROPS mounted in front of the driver on six narrow-track tractors with different mass and geometry. They brought to light that a proper definition of the force (torque) limits is related to both the ease of access to the FROPS grasping area and to the tractor geometry, while OECD Codes do not take into account that increasing the mass and dimensions of the tractor, the operator's required efforts for lowering/raising the FROPS increase not only because of the heavier FROPS but also for the uncomfortable zone for these operations.…”

Section: Background Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

Machinery Safety and Ergonomics: A Case Study Research to Augment Agricultural Tracklaying Tractors’ Safety and Usability

Gattamelata

Vita

Fargnoli

2021

IJERPH

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Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) in agricultural activities is an issue of major concern worldwide notwithstanding the ever stricter regulations issued in this sector. In particular, most accidents are related to the use of tractors and the main causes of this phenomenon are due to the lack of rollover protective structures (ROPSs). This happens especially when tractors are used in particular in-field operations that are characterized by limited clearances between tractor and crop rows so that farmers usually use tractors without ROPS (e.g., dismounting it). To solve such a problem, foldable protective structures (FROPSs) have been proposed, which should augment the operator’s protection. However, FROPS’s conventional solutions underestimate the operators’ risk-taking behavior and the widespread misuse of FROPS due to the efforts needed to operate it. The current study aims at contributing to the improvement of the latter issue proposing the development of a novel approach for the implementation of partial assistance systems (PASs) that can reduce the physical effort of the operator when raising/lowering the FROPS. The proposed methodology, which is based on a reverse engineering approach, was verified by means of a practical case study on a tracklaying tractor. Results achieved can contribute to expanding knowledge on technical solutions aimed at improving the human-machinery interaction in the agricultural sector.

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Models to predict the force to operate front foldable rollover protective structures for narrow-track tractors

Cited by 7 publications

References 11 publications

Considering Human Variability in the Design of Safe Interaction with Agricultural Machinery: The Case of Foldable Roll-Over Protective Structure (FROPS) Manual Handling

Considering Human Variability in the Design of Safe Interaction with Agricultural Machinery: The Case of Foldable Roll-Over Protective Structure (FROPS) Manual Handling

Safety Vision of Agricultural Tractors: An Engineering Perspective Based on Recent Studies (2009–2019)

Machinery Safety and Ergonomics: A Case Study Research to Augment Agricultural Tracklaying Tractors’ Safety and Usability

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