#26094
One of the perennial criticisms of ergonomics consultants is that much of what we say is 'just common sense’. I do not see this as a criticism. Nowadays, there is far too little common sense evident in our daily lives. However, what critics really fail to understand is that what may seem obvious with hindsight was rarely that obvious beforehand.
System Concepts (2005). Articles>Usability>Ergonomics
#26093
Statistics and Percentiles in Anthropometry
If you are more than 95th percentile height or less than 5th percentile, we predict that some everyday objects do not always seem quite the right size for you. Just as you were able to compare your height with others in a given population, it is also possible to make such comparisons for other dimensions such as arm length, hand grip span, seated elbow height etc. Those whose build puts them towards the one extreme or the other will be familiar with the problems of using awkward sized objects.
System Concepts (2005). Articles>Usability>Ergonomics
#26092
Imagine you are positioning an emergency 'rip cord' on a train. How high up should you put it? Anthropometrics are used to describe the 'user' or 'target' population for a product. Answers are given in terms of the range of body dimensions which exist in that population.
System Concepts (2005). Articles>Usability>Ergonomics
