20

CHAPTER III ANALYSIS OF THE EXISTING DESIGN

This chapter deals with the detailed ergonomic evaluation of the worksystem which consists of existing crane cabin design, human operators and the work environment. The study proceeds with first getting an overview of the worksystem and then goes into the detail study of each component of the worksystem. First, a reconnaissance study of the work system was done to get a acquainted with the worksystem: people, machine, place, processes and their interactions.

3.1 Reconnaissance Study of the Cabin Worksystem

The information obtained from the initial survey of the worksystem is shown diagrammatically in figure 3.1. The centre of the worksystem is man, i.e. crane operator, as show in figure 3.1. A single crane operator drives one crane. The intermediate circle of machine represents the crane cabin and includes all the machine components with which man interacts. The controls crane operator interacts with are as listed below. One control for Longitudinal Travel (LT) of the crane, on left hand side. One control for Main hook Cross Travel (MCT), on left hand side. One control for Auxiliary hook Cross Travel (ACT), on left hand side. One control for Main hook Hoisting (MH) on right hand side. One control for Auxiliary hook Hoisting (AH) on right hand side. One cabin motion switch on right hand side. One alarm bell on right hand side. One tong rotation switch on left hand side. Walky Talky on left hand side The signalling or information providing devices are listed as below An array of indication cum reset switches on right hand side. LCD touch screen on front right side. An annunciation panel on the right side at height.

21 The Walky Talky, LCD touch screen and Indication cum reset switches are of dual nature as they provide information and also crane operator manually interacts with them.

High Elevation

Confined Space

Poor Lighting

Environment
LCD Touch Screen Annunciation Panel

Crane Cabin
Walky Talky Longitudinal Travel Control Main Hoist Control Auxiliary Hoist Control Bell Switch

Main Cross Travel Control

Man
Cabin Motion Switch Array of Indicator cum Reset Switches

Tong Rotation Switch

Auxiliary Cross Travel Control

Fig 3.1 Diagrammatic representation of worksystem of BAF EOT crane cabin.

The intermediate circle of the worksystem (figure 3.1) represents the machine, i.e. crane cabin with all its components. The further study is about the machine component of the worksystem. The different sub components of crane viz. controls and indicators are studied for their location, distances and how crane operator interacts with them.

22 The outermost circle represents the workenvironment. All the four cranes in BAF are at highest elevation of 18 meters among all the cranes in CRM complex. The cabin space is very confined with not enough space for easy movement or easy ingress and egress to the chair. There is only standing space of any extra person in the crane cabin. The lighting at the workzone is inadequate for the visual requirement of the task. There are 21 crane operators in BAF, who are equally distributed among the 3 shifts of a day. In each shift 6 crane operators run the cranes with one crane operator on a weekly off. The activities performed by crane operators are already mentioned in section 1.1.2. The complexity of the crane cabin worksystem is clearly apparent from the above discussion. Each of the crane operators was personally interviewed with a questionnaire covering workspace, visibility, chair design, ease of use of controls, placement of controls and ingress and egress to the cabin. The results of the interview are generalised as mean and shown in table 3.1

Table 3.1 Generalised result of assessment of BAF crane cabins by crane operators Parameters Structure of cabin Space inside the cabin Chair design Ease of use of controls Placement of controls Space between front window and chair Inclination of front window Total window area Floor window area Placement of walky-talky Placement of touch screen Placement of annunciation panel Placement of AC and fan Placement of switches Placement of indicators Left side visibility Right side visibility Front visibility Bottom visibility Speed of the crane Pathway to crane cabin Total= Crane-3A 7.45 7.64 4.64 4.27 5.64 6.36 6.45 7.09 6.91 4.91 5.09 6.82 7.27 5.55 5.64 6.18 6.91 7.45 6.64 7.55 5.82 6.61 Name of the cranes Crane-3 Crane-4 4.55 4.45 4.36 4.27 4.09 4.55 5.09 5.36 6.18 6.27 5.45 4.27 4.73 4.09 3.64 4.91 6.36 7.18 5.91 5.27 4.36 4.82 5.73 4.55 4.45 4.55 5.23 6.00 4.73 4.91 4.73 3.73 4.36 6.09 7.09 5.55 5.82 4.45 4.00 5.64 4.73 4.36 4.73 5.29 Crane-5 4.36 4.73 4.18 4.45 6.00 5.82 4.73 5.27 5.09 4.27 4.27 5.64 7.18 5.64 5.55 4.73 4.55 6.18 4.36 2.45 5.27 5.24

23 The cranes 3, 4 and 5 are older cranes which were designed by the companys own design department and are operational since the commissioning of the CRM. The crane 3A was also designed and installed by companys design department but was installed much later. Few improvements are made in crane 3A over the rest with respect to the work requirements of the crane operator. The width of the crane has been increased by 250 mm and it reduces the feeling of congestion inside the cabin. A larger floor window area is provided. The analysis of the crane operators feed back gives the idea of features that eases the work of crane operators. Features like structure of the cabin, space inside the cabin, total window area, floor window area, visibility and speed of the crane reduces the stress and increases the productivity of crane operators. The chair installed in the crane cabin is the seat of a car. The car seat is designed for reclining sitting posture, while crane operators adopt forward bending posture during work. It increases the stress in the lumbar portion of the body by reducing the angle between the thigh and trunk. The crane operators assessment clearly shows that the car seat provided as a chair in BAF crane cabin is totally unsuited for the work requirements of the crane operators.

The basic understanding of the components and their interactions with man gives one the complete understanding of the worksystem. This leads to the further study of the central component of the worksystem, man. For this an anthropometric study of the crane operators was carried out.

3.2 Anthropometric Study of Crane Operators

Knowledge of the anthropometric characteristics of the human is the pre-requisite for a good understanding of the fit between the man and machine and the biomechanical design of any work system. An anthropometric study was carried out for the total population of crane operators in the BAF. In this study 24 body dimensions were measured out of which 19 are static and 4 are dynamic dimensions. The sample size of 30 people where taken which consisted of 21 crane associates and 9 ground associates, who were formerly crane associates. The measurements were done in a standard setup of straight sitting posture on an ergonomic adjustable chair. After the measurement of all the relevant dimensions the 5th percentile, 95th percentile, mean, standard deviation and range of each of the parameter was calculated. The results of

24 the anthropometric study are showing in table 3.1. The relevance of each dimension with respect to various ergonomic characteristics of the worksystem is also mentioned.

Table 3.1 Anthropometric Study Results

Parameters Sitting Height Sitting shoulder height Eye height Sitting Elbow height Poplitieal height Knee height Thigh height Back-to-Poplitieal depth Back-to-Knee depth Hip breadth Shoulder breadth Elbow-to-Elbow breadth Knee-to-Knee breadth Distance betwn both feet Chest width Thigh width Knee width Max. Forward reach Max. Side reach Easy. Forward reach Easy. Side reach Back-to-Crotch depth Palm length

Mean 829.80 561.83 729.93 215.60 428.47 520.50 552.67 483.70 562.27 345.97 419.40 451.73 430.77 354.80 284.40 158.73 99.73 732.00 705.53 463.73 449.63 289.80 185.63

Std. Dev 31.32 25.46 27.16 23.84 23.41 25.05 25.50 27.28 26.56 25.86 21.61 34.81 51.08 78.86 22.56 11.08 7.29 43.59 36.67 23.97 23.59 31.00 10.69

5th %ile 778.44 520.07 685.39 176.50 390.07 479.42 510.84 438.96 518.71 303.55 383.96 394.65 347.00 225.47 247.41 140.56 87.78 660.52 645.39 424.43 410.94 238.96 168.11

95th %ile 881.16 603.59 774.48 254.70 466.86 561.58 594.49 528.44 605.82 388.38 454.84 508.81 514.54 484.13 321.39 176.90 111.69 803.48 765.67 503.04 488.32 340.64 203.16

Range 102.72 83.52 89.09 78.20 76.79 82.16 83.65 89.48 87.10 84.83 70.88 114.16 167.54 258.67 73.99 36.34 23.92 142.96 120.28 78.61 77.38 101.67 35.05

Relevance for Design Head Rest height Back Rest height Placement of Indicators Hand rest Seat Height Clearance over knee Thigh Clearance Seat Length Clearance ahead knee Seat Width Back Rest Breadth Distance between Hand rest Seat Width in fore Footrest placement Backrest Feature Design Seat Feature Design Seat Feature Design Workspace design Workspace design Workspace design Workspace design Seat Feature Design Workspace design

The following column charts (figure 3.2 to 3.23) show the distribution of data points for each parameter. They also give us an understanding of the number of data points in various ranges. The red line at the top is for the 95th percentile dimension of the population. The blue line in the middle is for the mean of the population. And the green line below the blue line is for the 5th percentile of the population. This information is of vital importance while designing for a human population as a definite range has to be decided for which the design will be applicable.

25
Sitting Height
900

880

860

840

820 Height (mm) Sitting Height 95th Percentile Mean 5th Percentile

800

780

760

740

720

700 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 Sample

Fig 3.2 Column chart showing distribution of Sitting Height.

Shoulder Height
700

600

500

Height (mm)

400

300

Shoulder height 5th Percentile Mean 95th Oercentile

200

100

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 Sample

Fig 3.3 Column chart showing data point distribution of Shoulder Height.

26
Sitting Eye Height
800

780

760

740

720 Height (mm) Eye height 5th Percentile 95th Percentile Mean

700

680

660

640

620

600 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 Samples

Fig 3.4 Column chart showing data point distribution of Sitting Eye Height.

Sitting Elbow Height

300

250

200

Height (mm)

150

Sitting Elow Height 5th Percentile 95th Percentile Mean

100

50

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 Sample

Fig 3.5 Column chart showing data point distribution of Sitting Elbow Height.

27
Poplitieal Height
500

450

400

350

300 Height (mm) Poplitieal height 95th Percentile 5th Percentile Mean

250

200

150

100

50

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 Sample

Fig 3.6 Column chart showing data point distribution of Poplitieal Height.
Knee Height
580

560

540

520 Height (mm) Knee Height 5th Percentile 95th Percentile Mean

500

480

460

440

420 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 Sample

Fig 3.7: Column chart showing data point distribution of Knee Height.

28
Thigh Height
700

600

500

Height (mm)

400

300

Series1 Mean 5th Percentile 95th Percentile

200

100

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 Sample

Fig 3.8 Column chart showing data point distribution of Sitting Thigh Height.

Back-Poplitieal Depth
600

500

400

Depth (mm)

300

Back Poplitieal Depth Mean 85th Percentile 5th Percentile

200

100

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 Sample

Fig 3.9 Column chart showing data point distribution of Back to Poplitieal Depth.

29
Back-Knee Depth
700

600

500

Depth (mm)

400

300

Back to Knee Depth Mean 95th Percentile 5th Percentile

200

100

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 Sample

Fig 3.10 Column chart showing data point distribution of Back to Knee Depth.

Hip Breadth
450

400

350

300 Breadth (mm)

250

200

Hip Breadth Mean 95th Percentile 5th Percentile

150

100

50

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 Sample

Fig 3.11 Column chart showing data point distribution of Sitting Hip Breadth.

30
Shoulder Breadth
500

450

400

350

Breadth (mm)

300 Shoulder Breadth Mean 95th Percentile 5th Percentile

250

200

150

100

50

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 Samples

Fig 3.12 Column chart showing data point distribution of Shoulder Breadth.

Elbow-to-Elbow Breadth
600

500

400 Breadth (mm) Elbow to Elbow Breadth Mean 95th Percentile 5th Percentile

300

200

100

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 Samples

Fig 3.13 Column chart showing data point distribution of Elbow to Elbow Breadth.

31
Knee-to-Knee Breadth
600

500

400 Breadth (mm)

300

Knee to Knee Breadth Mean 95th Percentile 5th Percentile

200

100

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 Samples

Fig 3.14 Column chart showing data point distribution of Knee to Knee Breadth.

Distance betwn both feet

600

500

400 Distance (mm)

300

Distance Between Both Feet Mean 95th Percentile 5th Percentile

200

100

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 Samples

Fig 3.15 Column chart showing data point distribution of Distance between both Feet while sitting in relaxed posture.

32
Chest Width
350

300

250

Width (mm)

200

150

Chest Width Mean 95th Percentile 5th Percentile

100

50

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 Samples

Fig 3.16 Column chart showing data point distribution of Chest Width.

Thigh Height
700

600

500

Height (mm)

400

300

Series1 Mean 5th Percentile 95th Percentile

200

100

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 Sample

Fig 3.17 Column chart showing data point distribution of Thigh Width.

33
Knee Width
120

100

80

Width (mm)

60

Knee Width Mean 95th Percevtile 5th Percentile

40

20

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 Samples

Fig 3.18 Column chart showing data point distribution of Knee Width.

Max Forward Reach

900

800

700

600

Reach (mm)

500

400

Max Forward Reach Mean 95th Percentile 5th Percentile

300

200

100

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 Samples

Fig 3.19 Column chart showing data point distribution of Maximum Forward Reach.

34
Max Side Reach
900

800

700

600

Reach (mm)

500

400

Max Side Reach Mean 95th Percentile 5th Percentile

300

200

100

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 Samples

Fig 3.20 Column chart showing data point distribution of Maximum Side Reach.

Easy Forward Reach

520

500

480

Reach (mm)

460

440

Easy Forward Reach Mean 95th Percentile 5th Percentile

420

400

380 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 Samples

Fig 3.21 Column chart showing data point distribution of Easy Forward Reach.

35

Easy Side Reach

600

500

400 Reach in mm

300

Easy Side Reach Mean 95th Percentile 5th Percentile

200

100

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 Samples

Fig 3.22 Column chart showing data point distribution of Easy Side Reach.

Back to Crotch Depth

400

350

300

250 Depth in mm Back to Crotch Depth 200 95th Percentile 50th Percentile 5th Percentile 100

150

50

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 Samples

Fig 3.23 Column chart showing data point distribution of Back to Crotch Depth.

36

3.3 Study of Component Layout

The layout of all the components in the crane cabin of BAF was studied and their distances measured. The distances of the control are measured from the elbow reference point. The layout of controls on arm controller is shown in figure 3.42. The controls are numbered in the figure, while their names are mentioned in table 3.2

Fig 3.24 Controls and their placement.

Two distances are measured for the controllers. The forward distance is measured from the seat reference point. Seat reference point is the point of intersection of centreline of seat pan and back rest. The offset distance is measure from the elbow reference point to the right or left direction. Elbow reference point is the point the elbow touches on arm rest while in straight sitting posture with arms close to body. The direct length is the distance measured along the line joining the elbow reference point and the control. The distances of controls and components is shown table 3.2 The heights are measured with respect to seat reference point and are show in the same table 3.2

37 Table 3.3 The distances of controls and other components Control Name LT MCT ACT MH AH Control Number #1 #2 #3 #4 #5 Forward Distance (mm) 295 165 45 295 295 Length Hand Rest Foot Rest Floor 75 125 Offset* (mm) 85 200 200 85 200 Height 55 365 615 Direct Length (mm) 307 259 205 307 307

The layout of the components is a distinct characteristic of any worksystem and determines the ease of human machine interaction. The fit between the human machine interface is studied to know the conformance of machine with the biomechanical limitations and capabilities of human.

3.4 Misfit in Human Machine Interface

On comparison of results of the anthropometric study with the component placement data of the crane cabin clearly identifies the misfit of the crane operator population with the exiting work system. The misfit is measured as the difference between the ideal position of the control or the component and the existing position. The misfit data is shown in table 3.3. In table 3.3 the dimensions mentioned in brackets their placement distances. For the control positions of Longitudinal Travel, Main Hoist and Auxiliary Hoist, 50th percentile of population have 45 mm of misfit while 95th percent of population have misfit of 84 mm. Similarly for 95th percentile of population has 136 mm of misfit for Main Cross Travel and 256 mm for Auxiliary Cross Travel. The ACT control has the largest misfit values for direct distance of 510.67 for 5the percentile population and 589.28 for 95th percentile population. When the operator sits 50 mm ahead of the seat reference point the misfits for all the controls increases. The largest increase in misfit is for 3rd controller which gets behind the operator by 5 mm.

38 For 50th percentile of population the misfit with foot rest is 63 mm and with floor is 187 mm. While the LCD touch screen is at an offset of 190 mm from the 50th percentile population eye height and beyond the maximum forward reach of 100 percent of the population. All the indicators were located behind the operator, which were totally out of field of vision while working.

Table 3.4 Misfit for BAF crane associates with their workspace. Parameters Offset of Touch screen from Eye Height Armrest misfit Leg-footrest misfit Leg-Floor misfit Offset of arm-rest on sides Mean 190.07 5.60 63.47 186.53 51.63 5th percentile 95th percentile 234.61 145.52 33.50 25.07 224.93 80.17 44.70 101.86 148.14 23.09

Person is sitting with his back supported by backrest Ideal position for Control 339.98 st th th Misfit for 1 /4 /5 control 44.98 Misfit for 2nd control 174.98 Misfit for 3rd control 294.98 Misfit for 1st/4th/5th control direct 29.98 nd Misfit for 2 control direct 79.98 Misfit for 3rd control direct 549.98 Person Sitting 50 mm ahead of Back Rest Misfit for 1st/4th/5th control 94.98 Misfit for 2nd control 224.98 Misfit for 3rd control 344.98

300.67 5.67 135.67 255.67 9.33 40.67 510.67

379.28 84.28 214.28 334.28 69.28 119.28 589.28

55.67 185.67 305.67

134.28 264.28 384.28

The misfit between man and machine results in many problems like awkward postures adopted, the stress induced do to awkward postures, the decrease in human efficiency. The further study was about the various postures human operator was required to adopt while working and the time durations for which the postures were occupied.

3.5 Postures Adopted while Working

The real time observation of the crane operator while working was carried out to identify the postures adopted by the crane operators. From this study 7 main postures

39 were identified which were adopted by crane operators. These postures were dictated by the geometry of the work space and the limited window areas.

365 mm

295 mm Hip Reference Point #1 Sitting Straight and Looking ahead #2 Bending Forward & Looking down

85 mm 200 mm

85 mm 200 mm

#3 Bending Right & Looking down-right

#4 Bending Left & Looking down-left

990 mm

#5 Looking Up

#6 Stretching out for Walky-Talky/Mouse

#7 Reclining on the chair with back supported

Fig 3.25 Seven Different Postures Occupied by Crane Operators

40

3.6 Posture Duration

A systematic time study was done to find out the time duration for which each of the postures are held. Following is the result of the posture time study, which shows the result in form of percentage of total working time a posture is occupied and the minutes the posture was in work period of 1 hour.

Table 3.5 Posture duration No. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Name Sitting Upright Forward Bending Looking Down Bending Right & Looking down-right Bending Left & Looking down-left Looking Up Stretching out for Walky-Talky/Mouse Reclining on the chair with back supported % of total time 14 64 7 7 1 1 6 Minutes/Hour 8.4 38.6 4.2 4.2 0.6 0.6 3.6

The posture Forward Bending and Looking Down is occupied for the maximum amount of time that is 64 percent of working time which is 38.6 minutes in 1 hour of working. Followed by this posture are Straight Back Sitting and Looking Forward which is occupied for 14 percent of total working time i.e. 8.4 minutes in 1 hour or working. Bending on Sides and Looking Down on Sides is occupied for 7 percent of total working time i.e. 4.2 minutes in 1 hour of working. While Reclining Back on Chair is occupied for just 6 percent of time which is just 3.6 minutes in 1 hour of working. This posture is classified as Low Level Static Posture. Low Level means postures which exert low level of loads on muscles, while static means that loads are maintained on muscles for a significant period of time without any or much motion in muscles. Such postures pose great risk on muscular health and ability of the muscles to perform its work properly over a period of time. If proper work period is not allowed between the work periods there will be accumulation of fatigue which can result in injury and loss of work functions of the muscles. From the following study of work rest cycle studies the amount of total loading of muscles during a day of work. With the knowledge of awkward postures adopted by the crane operators and the and the time durations for each of the postures the further study was carried out to know the total time duration an operator works in a day and the pattern of his work rest cycle.

41 3.7 Work Rest Cycle

The extreme work rest cycle is observed during the night shift from 10 pm to 6 am when the crane operators continuously work for 4 hours without a break. This results in extreme stress levels among night shift crane operators. BAF is a process driven system. The study shows that work rest cycle depends on many factors like completion of heating cycles, work load, work scheduling, availability of operators and cranes and shift. Our study show that on an average crane operator works for 3:08:11 hours in A shift, 3:26:44 hours in B shift and 4:00 hours in C shift. The data is attached in appendix C.

Combining the above two studies of postures and work rest cycle we get the data of how long a person occupies a posture in a shift, as shown in the table below.

Table 3.6 Total time a posture is occupied in a shift No. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Name Straight Back Sitting Forward Bending Looking Down Bending Right & Looking down-right Bending Left & Looking down-left Looking Up Stretching out for Walky-Talky/Mouse 7 Reclining on the chair with back supported A shift B shift C shift (minutes) (minutes) (minutes) 26.32 28.84 33.6 120.32 131.84 153.6 13.16 14.42 16.8 13.16 14.42 16.8 1.88 2.06 2.4 1.88 2.06 2.4 11.28 12.36 14.4

This shows that forward being posture is occupied for over 120 minutes in A shift, over 131 minutes in B shift and over 153 minutes in C shift. These time durations exceed the recommended time limits for Low Level Static Postures.

The interaction between the workspace geometry, work organisation and human results in postures adopted, duration the posture is adopted and work rest cycle. Another type of interaction between the man and machine is with use of controls. The further study deals with the interaction between human and control and studies the frequency of operation, frequency of toggle and sequence of operation of the controls.

42

3.8 Control Operation Frequency and Sequence

This study shows the frequency of use of each control, the sequence of use of controls and the duration of occupancy of hands with each of the controls. In table 3.6 shows operation frequency data for the left hand side controls. Here the operation denotes the number of times the control was reached for operation and frequency denotes the number of times a control was toggled. The time duration for each of the study is 1 hour. The mean frequency of controls use in one hour is 517 for LT, 347 for MCT, 179 for ACT, 20 for Walky-Talky, 401for MH, 243 for AH, 30 for Cabin cross travel and 3 for Bell. Percentage of time left hand is occupied with MT is 36, MCT 36, ACT is 21 and Walky-Talky is 6. Percentage of time right hand is occupied by MH is 43, AH is 24, Cabin Movement 28 and Bell is 4.

Table 3.7 Control operation frequency for left hand Side controls. Study 1 2 3 4 Average Operation LT 107 100 97 41 86.25 Operation MCT 90 125 95 34 86 Operation ACT 71 84 30 16 50.25 Operation WT 10 24 27 0 15.25

Table 3.8 Control toggle frequency for left hand Side controls. Study 1 2 3 4 Average Frequency LT 508 372 481 706 516.75 Frequency MCT 369 513 248 258 347 Frequency ACT 247 287 82 102 179.5 Frequency WT 17 27 34 0 19.5

Table 3.7 clearly shows that Longitudinal Travel control is the most used control followed by Main Cross Travel and Auxiliary Cross Travel in respectively. So LT has to be placed in the most accessible and comfortable position to enhance the ease of its use. Then priority wise MCT and ACT

43 should be placed. Walky Talky is least frequently used and so the function of leaving the controls to reach the walky talky should be eliminated by provision for voice activated voice receiver.

Table 3.9 Sequence of Operation of controls for Left Hand Side Controls Sequence Sequence LT-MCT LT-ACT 60 43 62 28 59 12 19 7 50 22.5 Sequence Sequence ACTMCTSequence Sequence MCT ACT MCT-LT ACT-LT 25 60 45 23 45 60 27 47 10 54 15 9 4 17 7 3 21 47.75 23.5 20.5

Study 1 2 3 4 Average

Table 3.8 shows that control LT and MCT are used most frequently in sequence of each other. So these two controls should be placed nearer to each other to reduce the hand travel to move from one control to another control.

Control Operation Frequency

600

LT
500

400

MCT

Frequency

300

200

ACT

100

Walky Talky
0 1 2 Controls 3 4

Fig 3.26 Bar chart showing the frequency of use controllers and walky talky on left hand side.

44 Table 3.9 Control Operation Frequency for Right Hand Side controls. Study 1 2 3 4 Average Operation Operation Operation Operation Freq. Freq. Freq. Freq. MH AH Cabin Bell MH AH Cabin Bell 21 10 16 2 289 213 20 2 39 20 29 1 585 214 37 2 25 22 10 2 290 434 41 2 23 9 15 6 440 109 23 6 27 15.25 17.5 2.75 401 242.5 30.25 3

Control Operation Frequency

450

MH, 401
400

350

300

Frequency

250

AH, 242

200

150

100

50

Cabin, 30 Bell, 3

0 1 2 3 4

Fig 3.27 Bar chart showing the frequency of use controllers and switches on right hand side.

3.9 Pain Occurrence

For getting the data about perception of exertion and pain by the crane operators during the working a modified Borg scale of range 1 to 10 was used. The reason for using the modified Borg scale was the ease of understanding and relating to the modified Borg scale of range 1-10 instead of the original Borg scale of 6-20. The operators were asked to give feed back on their perceived pain after every hour or continuous work. Hundred percent of crane operators suffer from pain in lower back, neck, upper back, shoulders, arms, forearms, knee and legs. During the first working

45 hour the lower back, neck and upper back pain starts and reaches to very high levels after 2.5 hours of continuous working.

Table 3.10 Pain Perception Feed Back by Operators (on Modified Borg Scale 1-10).

Body Zones Neck Upper Back Lower Back Sholder Arms Fore Arms Wrist Fingers Knee Legs Ankle

1hour 2 hour 3 hour 10 10 9 6 7 7 9 10 10 4 5 6 4 5 5 4 5 5 1 1 2 0 0.5 0.5 3 6 6 4 6 6 0 1 0

From the above data it can be seen that all operators start feeling maximum pain in neck and very very severe pain in lower back just after working for 1 hour in crane due to continuous looking down. Also significant pain is perceived in other parts of body. By the third hour of continuous working the pain in neck seems to subside but when this data is seen in conjunction with all other data, it becomes clear that the increase in level of pain in other body parts and being working continuously with maximum level of pain makes the operators perception of pain in neck subside. The over all results show that operators continuously work for hours under sever working conditions with maximum pain in lower back and neck region, sever to very severe pain in upper back and with varied degrees of pain in other body parts.

This study clearly demonstrates that the existing crane cabin design do not provide any comfort, convenience of use or safety from high risks of musco-skeletal disorder. A new crane cabin designed on ergonomic principles is necessary to be provided to relieve the crane operators of stress, pain and risk of any injury. The next chapter proposes a new ergonomic crane cabin design as a solution to the problems of crane operators.

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