Table Of ContentBodyspace
Anthropometry, Ergonomics and the Design of Work
Stephen Pheasant
30 March 1949–30 March 1996
Stephen, who died at the tragically early age of 47, will be remembered by a large and
diverse group of friends, colleagues, students, courtroom colleagues, and musicians. This
alone is testimony to a man whose undoubted intellectual, creative, and communicative
skills were matched only by his verve and energy in a wealth of areas.
Stephen was raised in Islington before going up to Gonville and Caius College,
Cambridge to read Medical Science, in 1968. His contemporaries will perhaps remember
him best for his passion for free jazz and his role in taking the musically based shows
‘Stony Ground’ and ‘Make Me, Make You’ to the Edinburgh Fringe in consecutive years.
His earlier experience with the National Youth Jazz Orchestra, and the inspiration of his
hero Charlie Parker, no doubt influenced him to form the Steve Pheasant Quintet which
played at the White Hart Inn, Drury Lane from the mid 1970s to the early 1980s. A close
friend and band member, Iain Cameron, recalls Steve’s versatility and be-bop creativity on
sax, his occasional vocal rendering of ‘Let the good times roll’ and the band’s ‘sit in’
style, in a manner which reflects the enthusiasm and participative spirit of the man. This,
coupled with a burning commitment, are instantly recognized in his professional career.
Students of his at the Royal Free Hospital and University College, where he lectured
for many years in anatomy, biomechanics, and ergonomics, could rarely have encountered
a more exceptional communicator. His ability to conceptualize and then project complex
biomechanical functions in a suitable mode for student learning were testimony to his
instinct for education and scholarship. He followed with keen interest the progress of the
ergonomists he helped train. His academic and textbook publications were recognized for
their application and clarity, a talent acknowledged through the 1985 award, sponsored by
the New Scientist, for writing about science in plain English. Such skills were inevitably
sought by other academic institutions and learned societies, thus he was always high on
the invited speaker lists of conference organisers. Professional societies, including the
Royal Society of Medicine and the Royal College of Nursing recognized his abilities, as
did the British School of Osteopathy, where he held an honorary chair.
His written output was prolific and his textbooks, including the first edition of Bodyspace
(1986) and Ergonomics, Work and Health (1990) have become standards on reading lists
around the world. His research output was recognized by the Ergonomics Society with the
award of the Sir Frederick Bartlet Medal in 1982, jointly with his close colleague Professor
Donald Grieve. His published data of human dimensions have been cited in more ergonomic
designs than perhaps any other, and we are grateful too for his contribution to improved
design of equipment, tools and many other artefacts of work and leisure use.
When he moved from the academic world, he chose to enter the field of personal injury
litigation. In particular, Stephen specialized in work-related musculoskeletal damage,
including back pain and repetitive strain injury. As an expert witness, most frequently
acting on behalf of the injured party, he was perhaps at his most fulfilled. His desire to
challenge orthodoxy, his intellectual skills, his ability to communicate, his love of fierce
debate, and his instinct for ‘telling a good story’ were all given full rein in such an arena.
I have rarely seen him happier than when we developed litigious arguments or exchanged
courtroom anecdotes with the help of a good Bordeaux. I am sure that adversaries and
colleagues alike will sorely miss his presence and his skills.
Stephen knew of his failing health, but never slowed in his endeavours, his output was
prodigious. His mother and his partner, Sheila Lee, have much to bear. Family, colleagues,
students and friends will remain indebted to Stephen, each in our own way. He will be
remembered with affection, respect and regard. I know I speak for many when I say I have
lost an inspiring friend.
Dr Peter Buckle
Bodyspace
Anthropometry, Ergonomics and the
Design of Work
STEPHEN PHEASANT
SECOND EDITION
UK Taylor & Francis Ltd, 11 New Fetter Lane, London EC4P 4EE
USA Taylor & Francis Inc., 325 Chestnut Street, 8th Floor, Philadelphia, PA 19106
Copyright © The Estate of Stephen Pheasant
Taylor & Francis is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group
This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2003.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval
system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, electrostatic, magnetic
tape, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of
the copyright owner.
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
ISBN 0-203-48265-4 Master e-book ISBN
ISBN 0-203-79089-8 (Adobe eReader Format)
ISBN 0-7484-0067-2 (cased)
ISBN 0-7484-0326-4 (paperback)
Library of Congress Cataloguing Publication Data are available
Cover design by Amanda Barragry
Contents
Foreword ix
PART ONE Ergonomics, Anthropometry and the Design of Work 1
1 Introduction 3
1.1 What is ergonomics? 4
1.2 Anthropometries 6
1.3 Human proportion: an historical perspective 7
1.4 Ergonomics and design 8
2 Principles and Practice of Anthropometries 15
2.1 The statistical description of human variability 16
2.2 Constraints and criteria 21
2.3 Fitting trials and the method of limits 23
2.4 Anthropometric data 27
2.5 An annotated list of body dimensions 30
3 Workspace Design 46
3.1 Clearance 47
3.2 Reach—the workspace envelope 51
3.3 Zones of convenient reach 52
3.4 The normal working area 55
3.5 Joint ranges 57
3.6 Working posture 59
3.7 Vision and the posture of the head and neck 63
3.8 Working height 65
3.9 Posture and strength 66
4 Sitting and Seating 68
4.1 Fundamentals of seating 68
v
vi CONTENTS
4.2 The spine in standing and sitting 69
4.3 Anthropometric aspects of seat design 75
4.4 The easy chair and its relatives 80
5 Hands and Handles 83
5.1 Anthropometry of the hand 83
5.2 Anatomical terminology 83
5.3 Fundamentals of handle design 86
5.4 Biomechanics of tool design 88
6 Ergonomics in the Office 93
6.1 The office desk 94
6.2 The office chair 96
6.3 Visual demands of screen-based work 98
6.4 The keyboard (and other input devices) 100
6.5 ‘Good posture’ in screen-based work 101
6.6 The design of screen-based working tasks 104
7 Ergonomics in the Home 105
7.1 The kitchen 105
7.2 The bathroom 109
7.3 The bedroom 112
8 Health and Safety at Work 115
8.1 Human factors in industrial safety: an overview 118
8.2 Ergonomic injuries 122
8.3 Back injury at work 124
8.4 Lifting and handling 126
8.5 Work-related upper limb disorders 137
PART TWO The Bodyspace Tables 151
9 Human Diversity 153
9.1 Sex differences 154
9.2 Ethnic differences 158
9.3 Growth and development 160
9.4 The secular trend 164
9.5 Social class and occupation 168
9.6 Ageing 170
10 Anthropometric Data 174
10.1 Notes on sources of data 175
10.2 British adults (Tables 10.1–10.6) 175
10.3 Adult populations of other countries (Tables 10.7–10.16) 176
10.4 Infants (Tables 10.17–10.21) 176
10.5 Children and youths (Tables 10.22–10.38) 176
CONTENTS vii
Appendix A Mathematical Synopsis of Anthropometries 215
References and further reading 225
Index 239
Foreword
It is now 10 years since the first edition of Bodyspace appeared. Over this period of
time it has become clear that the science of ergonomics and its application to modern
work practices and industrial design have never been needed more. The horrific
nature of disasters such as Chernobyl, Bhopal, the Piper Alpha explosion, the
Kegworth Air crash and the King’s Cross fire have all carried with them important
lessons for ergonomists and other designers. The need for an understanding of human
behaviour, capacities and needs prior to the implementation of a complex system has
been identified over and over again. Tragically, the professionals with the required
knowledge and skills are too frequently consulted only after the event. I am sure that
many of my colleagues would agree that the call to action rarely comes during the
design process but rather as a desperate plea following an acute or chronic system
failure.
If the major acute complex system failure is the focus of public and media
attention then the chronic system failure is the silent enemy. In the UK, a six-fold
increase in sickness days lost to back pain since 1974, 1 million workers reporting
musculoskeletal problems associated with their work in a single year, and the
burgeoning problems of stress-related disorders reflect a society which is neither
adapting, managing or designing in sympathy with the needs of the workforce. The
cost of this failure is rarely evaluated. The burden of care falls on the tax payer and
has been estimated at up to £16 billion.
Organisations—perhaps with some justification—often feel that they are
overregulated and subject to onerous restraints in a highly competitive world. The
added ‘burden’ of health and safety is frequently cited as a limiting factor in the
trading success of businesses. I know of no studies which have proven this case and
conversely know of many hugely successful organisations who have shown that
quality is a broad concept, encompassing issues of product design and production,
workforce well-being and environmental impact, amongst others.
It is of concern that the business case for user-focused design is so rarely
developed. It is perhaps too obvious that a well-designed tool will perform better in
the hands of a skilled operator than a poorly designed one. A failure to document this
adequately and regularly leads, too frequently, to good design being replaced by
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