Physiological Responses And Subjective Discomfort Of Simulated Whole-Body Vibration From A Mobile Underground Mining Machine

Details

• Personal Author:
  Bobick, Thomas G. ; Unger, Richard L. ; Gallagher, Sean ; Doyle-Coombs, Diane M.
• Description:
  The U.S. Bureau of Mines has developed an in-house facility to evaluate selected effects of whole-body vibration (WBV) levels experienced by underground mobile equipment operators, Vertical vibration data were collected from a coal haulage vehicle via a uniaxial accelerometer attached to the machine frame under the operator's seat. Data were analyzed and processed so a computer-controlled platform could approximate the vibration signals. Eight men (35.5 yr 2 6.5 SD) participated in a pilot study to evaluate the effects of shock and kBV on heart rate (HR), blood pressure (BP), and subjective discomfort. Subjects were exposed to vibration for 30-min periods while seated in a typical seat (backrest angle at 90° or 130°) 'that was plain steel or modified with 2 in foam padding. Subjects repeated the same protocol on a separate day, without the vibration. Results indicated the vibration significantly increased the HR (Q< 0.01), systolic BP, mean BP, the number of times subjects reported discomfort, and overall subjective discomfort rating (pc 0.85). When seated in the steel seat, the overall discomfort rating (E< 0,081) ad the number of times discomfort was reported (p< 0.05) increased significantly. Seatback angle had no significant effect on any of the dependent measures.
• Subjects:
  NIOSH
• Document Type:
  Text
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:na
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:3c8b88e23dd27bda12a8cc104fe8a65e1758c5a6c9f157239209af9b0906150b228358d802e2e66981008e1f0c8c0dc28e026352dd9195d20f46abc3bb89282a
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/9178/cdc_9178_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 2.28 MB ]