Abstract
Presently there is no prescribed anthropometric database provided or specified in the Federal Aviation Regulations, hence aircraft designs often utilize legacy anthropometric databases that may not reflect the target pilot population. This study was an information synthesis of anthropometric databases for aircraft design. The findings indicated that, although most current aviation designs have utilized legacy anthropometric data, there are a sufficient number of valid existing and emerging anthropometric databases that include body dimension measurements and weight/mass measurements compiled from data sets gathered either through large surveys, or statistically derived, that are representative of the target pilot population. Furthermore, new scanning technologies, along with more sophisticated statistical techniques for matching/forecasting target populations from legacy anthropometric databases, have enhanced the ability to effectively and efficiently gather these data on a periodic basis, hence anthropometric data that are not representative of the pilot population should no longer be accepted as a limitation in aircraft design. The one area that demands further study are current data for human-strength/control force measurements. Although there have been some recent small-scale surveys conducted to gather these data, there is a paucity of any current large-scale comprehensive human strength/control force data applicable to aircraft design.
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