PSHFES Dinner Meeting – How to Reduce Whole Body Vibration in Vehicles

November 17th, 6pm

Angelo’s of Burien in the Michelangelo Room

601 SW 153rd St, Burien, WA 98166

Phone: (206) 244-3555

www.angelosofburien.com

There is no cost to attend. Food and beverages are available for purchase

Seat research has shown that the type of seat suspension matters and will affect how much of the terrain-induced vibration is transmitted to the vehicle operator. The recent introduction of commercially available active suspension truck seats has shown a substantial (50%) reduction in vehicle operator exposure to vibration.  Recent bus driver seat research at the University of Washington pitted the 80 year old static, height adjustable, suspension-less pedestal seat design against the industry-standard, long travel, air-suspension seat.   The fact that there was little to no difference in vibration protection between suspension-less and full travel air-suspension seats raises the question of the effectiveness of full travel air-suspension seats; at least in on-road vehicles.  After 30 years of little innovation in vehicle seating, we are going to see a renaissance in vehicle seating design.  Various applications of seating interventions to reduce vehicle operator’s exposure to potentially harmful whole body vibration will be presented.

Peter Johnson, PhD, is a Professor in the Occupational and Environmental Exposure Sciences program, specializing in ergonomics. He earned his Doctorate in Bioengineering from the University of California - Berkeley and has worked as a researcher at the National Institutes of Occupational Health in the United States, Sweden and Denmark. Dr. Johnson and his lab are nationally and internationally recognized for their work evaluating seating alternatives to reduce vehicle operator exposures to Whole Body Vibration (WBV). Currently, in cooperation with Northeastern University, the University of Connecticut, Oregon State University and Pontifical Xavierian University, his lab is conducting studies to evaluate ways to reduce WBV exposures in the semi-truck, bus and mining industries.