A comprehensive ergonomic validation of workspaces design employing digital and physical mock-ups in the case of light armored vehicle

Abstract

The study aims to evaluate the compatibility of the proposed design workspace dimensions of light armored vehicle (LAV) with the targeted populations of Ethiopian army personnel using both digital and physical ergonomic evaluations. The dimensional compatibility was tested using digital mock-up interfaced with human manikin representing the anthropometries of 5th percentile female and 95th percentile male values for Ethiopian army. CATIA V5 software was utilized for developing digital human and vehicle models, while the physical mock-up was tested through minimum possible user trials (to avoid redundancy of testing) that involved 13 users sufficient to represent the target population. The intended vehicular workspaces, in terms of space adequacy, view field, reaching, and manipulative needs were found to be ideally compatible with the target users, accommodating 90% (for adjustable units) and 95% (for non-adjustable units) of them. This confirms that the proposed basic design dimensions of LAV workspaces for driver, gunner, commander, and other infantry troops are compatible with the target users in both evaluation techniques. Hence, our findings indicate that the newly proposed design dimensions can be utilized as design standards primarily for fabricating Ethiopian LAVs, as they ensure occupational compatibility for the users, which can improve crew operational performance, efficiency, and safety.