Journal article
Effect of non-neutral seated postures on whole-body vibration measurements
Applied ergonomics, Vol.138, 104868
08/07/2026
DOI: 10.1016/j.apergo.2026.104868
PMID: 42566806
Abstract
ISO 2631-1 generally treats frequency-weighted acceleration measured at the seat-occupant interface as independent of operator posture, yet this assumption has rarely been examined explicitly. This study evaluates that assumption. Twenty-four participants were exposed to three-dimensional whole-body vibration on a machine operator seat while maintaining forward lean, reclined, and twisted postures. Despite constant base excitation vibrations, the seat-interface frequency-weighted RMS acceleration (FWRMS) differed significantly across postures (F = 0.871, R = 0.765, T = 0.845 m/s
; p < 0.001), with posture explaining 78% of variance. A sandbag surrogate experiment confirmed that body-weight redistribution alone, without neuromuscular involvement, produced an approximately 13% variation in FWRMS, linking postural load shift to altered seat suspension dynamics. When propagated through ISO 2631-1 exposure equations, this corresponds to an approximately 27% difference in allowable daily exposure duration. These findings highlight the need to incorporate posture into whole-body vibration standard 2631-1 and occupational vibration risk assessment.
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- Effect of non-neutral seated postures on whole-body vibration measurements
- Creators
- Salam Rahmatalla - University of IowaJonathan DeShaw - University of IowaYash Kumar Dhabi - University of IowaBrian Fiegel - University of IowaElizabeth M Ritchie - University of IowaTyler Guzowski - University of IowaGeb Thomas - University of Iowa, Industrial and Systems EngineeringDavid G Wilder - University of IowaNathan B Fethke - University of Iowa
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Publication Details
- Applied ergonomics, Vol.138, 104868
- DOI
- 10.1016/j.apergo.2026.104868
- PMID
- 42566806
- ISSN
- 1872-9126
- eISSN
- 1872-9126
- Publisher
- Elsevier
- Grant note
- National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) within the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Great Plains Center for Agricultural Health (CDC/NIOSH): U54OH007548
This study was supported by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) within the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) through a cooperative agreement with the Great Plains Center for Agricultural Health (CDC/NIOSH grant no: U54OH007548) . The findings and conclusions in this work are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views of CDC/NIOSH.
- Language
- English
- Date published
- 08/07/2026
- Academic Unit
- Roy J. Carver Department of Biomedical Engineering; Civil and Environmental Engineering; Occupational and Environmental Health; Iowa Technology Institute; Orthopedics and Rehabilitation; Industrial and Systems Engineering; Injury Prevention Research Center
- Record Identifier
- 9985217066502771
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