Title: Simulation of Manual Material Handling tasks in three dimensional spaces

Authors: Yanxin Zhang, Simon M. Hsiang

Addresses: Department of Sport and Exercise Science, The University of Auckland, Auckland 1142, New Zealand. ' Department of Industrial Engineering, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695-7906, USA

Abstract: A novel biomechanical simulation model was developed to simulate Manual Material Handling (MMH) activities based on non-linear optimisation method. Mathematically, the approach was expressed as a system of nonlinear equations with an objective function and a set of constraints, which was solved using an iterative numerical algorithm. To test and compare the simulation results, a factorial experiment was conducted to obtain the kinematics data for different task conditions. The experimental results showed that the simulated data fit well with the experimental data for all experiment conditions. This model showed a very promising capability for modelling and analysis.

Keywords: MMH; manual materials handling; biomechanical simulation; nonlinear optimisation; human–workstation modelling; human factors; kinematics.

DOI: 10.1504/IJHFMS.2008.022476

International Journal of Human Factors Modelling and Simulation, 2008 Vol.1 No.2, pp.197 - 210

Published online: 08 Jan 2009 *

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