Abstract
The pressure distribution between a seat and people is a very important index in the assessment of sitting discomfort for seat cushion. However, limited research has been found for the relationship between pressure distribution and anthropometric dimensions, especially for Body Mass Index (BMI) of users with different sizes. Effects of BMI ranges (underweight, normal and obese) and cushion hardness (medium, firm, extra firm and wood board) were the factors investigated in this study. The results indicated that the normal participant had a higher comfort degree than the obese and underweight participants. The obese participant preferred the extra firm foam cushion compared to normal participants who preferred the medium foam cushion.
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Acknowledgments
Special thanks are due to Flexsteel Company, Mississippi, who provided experimental materials for this study. Thanks are also due to Mr. Bob Tackett and Mr. Franklin Quin of Mississippi State University who provided assistance to this project. Startup Fund for Distinguished Scholars from Zhejiang A&F University: 101/2034020080. Research project of Xinlinmen Furniture Co., Ltd (Zhejiang, China): H20170306. Zhejiang Natural Science Foundation: LQ18C160002.
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Hu, L., Tor, O., Duan, P., Zhang, J., Yu, X. (2019). Effect of Body Mass Index on Sitting Pressure Distribution on Seat Cushion. In: Rebelo, F., Soares, M. (eds) Advances in Ergonomics in Design. AHFE 2018. Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing, vol 777. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-94706-8_3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-94706-8_3
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