Ergonomics
ISSN: 0014-0139 (Print) 1366-5847 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/terg20
Comfort and appearance I. OLDENKAMP To cite this article: I. OLDENKAMP (1990) Comfort and appearance, Ergonomics, 33:4, 413-420, DOI: 10.1080/00140139008927145 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00140139008927145
Published online: 27 Mar 2007.
Submit your article to this journal
Article views: 25
View related articles
Full Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at http://www.tandfonline.com/action/journalInformation?journalCode=terg20 Download by: [NUS National University of Singapore]
Date: 06 November 2015, At: 16:06
ERGONOMICS, 1990, VOL. 33, No.4, 413-420
Comfort and appearance I.
OLDENKAMP
Faculty of Industrial Design Engineering, Product Ergonomics Group, Delft University of Technology, Jaffalaan 9, 2628 BX Delft, The Netherlands
Downloaded by [NUS National University of Singapore] at 16:06 06 November 2015
Keywords: Marketing ergonomics; Individual; Aids; Transport; Handicap.
A project is being carried out with the aim to develop an individual, engine-driven, covered vehiclefor handicapped people. The prime object is that this vehicle should meet the requirements of the handicapped. Nevertheless, choices had to be made by the parties concerned that could have violated this goal. In particular, this was experienced when designing the interior to accommodate large persons on the one hand and meeting the aesthetic requirements of the exterior, which called for a smaller height, on the other. Marketing ergonomics was used to deal with this problem.
I. Introduction At Delft University of Technology a development project is in progress to design an engine-driven vehicle for handicapped people. This project is being carred out jointly by the department of Ergonomics, the Technical University in Eindhoven and Messrs. Waaijenberg in Veenendaal, the latter being the manufacturer of these vehicles in The Netherlands. From the outset it was recognized that ergonomics should be a major issue in this project, but its importance should be shared with the other items involved, such as appearance, ease of assembly, price etc. It is the task of the ergonomist to level his interest with those of the other disciplines to the benefit of the final product. The way in which this task was performed during this project will be described in this paper by means of a dilemma which occurred. It should be noted that this is not one dilemma, in fact designing implies a continuous choice between alternative solutions. The dilemma described here deals with conflicting interests between exterior appearance and usefulness. This dilemma was chosen because it played such an important role in this project. This paper describes in detail how the dilemma was dealt with. A more complete description of the project has been presented in Marinissen and Oldenkamp (1989). The project has not been completed as yet. At present a first complete prototype is being built.
2. Project 2.1. Problem Mobility is one of the prime needs of human beings. For almost everything human beings do, it is necessary to move from one place to another. If one's mobility is hampered by a disfunction ofthe body, one is truly handicapped. Our need to be mobile can be easily illustrated. Look at the artefacts that we employ to improve our mobility beyond the restraints of the human body: bicycles, cars and an entire public transport system;just to reach any place in the world we wish to go. We must also be aware ofthe fact that we require some physical fitness to use these means of transport. OOl~139/90 S3{)()
© 1990 Taylor
& Francis Ltd.
Downloaded by [NUS National University of Singapore] at 16:06 06 November 2015
414
I. Oldenkamp
For people with physical handicaps, aids have been developed to relieve them to some extent. No matter how cleverly designed they may be, they are just aids to alleviate the result of a physical handicap. They never match up to a healthy body. Furthermore it can be noted that a wide range of aids is required. This is illustrated by the large number of different wheelchairs that are available for different situations. There are wheelchairs to be used at home, on the street, folding, with or without an engine, sports wheelchairs, etc. So if a new wheelchair is to be designed, it is important from a marketing point of view, to establish the market position of this new product: which partial problem of mobility should this wheelchair solve and what other products already solve related mobility problems? In attempting to describe the mobility of a person, two variables appear to play an important role: the distance to be travelled and the time needed to cover this distance. Mobility in the interior of a house calls for a low speed as distances are small. Outside there is a need to travel at a higher speed as the distances are much longer. Different means of transport are already available to the handicapped. In figure I an attempt is made to compare these different means of transport. Figure 1 shows that an engine-driven wheelchair is applicable outside for the handicapped. This is particularly so if the handicapped person does not possess a (modified) private car or if he/she does not live near a bus stop. This fact has been realized and consequently a range of different engine-driven wheelchairs has been designed, among them one which
(
home
out door
)
-;;
Il 10
>
d {m I
4
1. 2. 3. 4.
healthy person, walking/running person being carried
man-powered wheel chair powered vehicle for handicapped persons 5. public transport (bus)
0.01
Figure 1. Relation between travelling speed (V) and distance to cover(d)for different means of transport. The area under the curves denotes the combination of (V) and (d)that can be accomplished with the particular aid.
Downloaded by [NUS National University of Singapore] at 16:06 06 November 2015
416
I. Oldenkamp
Downloaded by [NUS National University of Singapore] at 16:06 06 November 2015
was done partially for practical reasons, as Messrs. Waaijenberg keep records of all their customers, but it was also assumed that users of the new vehicle would be similar to the present users of 'Arola', One hundred and fifty-seven questionnaires were returned. Analysis of this information showed that: (I) There is an equal percentage of male and female users; (2) The average age was 62·3 years. The youngest was 17 years old, the oldest was 88 years of age; (3) The average body weight was 71'3kg, the lightest person weighed 44 kg, the heaviest 98 kg; (4) The average body length was 169'6cm, the smallest was 142cm, the largest 192cm. The handicap most frequently recorded concerned the legs. Poliomyelitis or multiple sclerosis was the next most frequent handicap. The rest of the people in the poll suffered from various deficiencies like restricted sight, limited arm functions, heart or lung problems or a bad spine. With respect to the use of the vehicle, it appears that 50% of the owners used their vehicle more than seven times per week. The largest distance recorded was 300 km. It was also noted that one quarter of the users had been involved in a traffic accident. A number of shortcomings were noted. The main problems were: (I) Insufficient luggage space and poor admittance to the space available; (2) Bad seating comfort caused by limited height between seat and roof, and too narrow seats, especially if two people had to be seated side by side. The latter remark relates to the bench width of only 98 cm which is due to the legislative restricted vehicle width of I m. 2.2.2. Analysis: Based on the information obtained, an analysis was performed on the interior space and the layout of displays and controls. Points of reference were the body dimensions and the actions a person employs when using the vehicle. (The latter can be seen as a structured list of subsequent actions taken by the user, from which a list of requirements is derived. This list of requirements is used as a guideline throughout the design process.) Doors were designed keeping in mind the implied improvements on accessibility for both the user and luggage. A criterion for. a good seating position is ease of getting in and out of the seat. To board the vehicle, the user either steps from the pavement into the vehicle or he/she shifts over from a wheelchair. Both situations require an adequate seating height, as is found in trucks. Once this has been established from tables giving human dimensions, the interior dimensions in the lateral plane can be derived. In this study the data from Kirchner and Rohmert (1974) and Molenbroek and Dirken (1984) were used. The position of the steering wheel was taken from McCormick and Sanders (1982).In figure 3 the main dimensions have been summarized. To test if all the data were interpreted well, a trial model was built. This model was tested in user trials in which 20 subjects participated. The subjects were asked to perform tasks such as boarding and leaving the vehicle and packing and unpacking luggage. They were asked to comment on seating and layout of displays and controls. The results of these tests confirmed that the theoretically-derived information was interpreted well. Once this had been established, work could be started on the exterior design.
Comfort and appearance
417
.
Downloaded by [NUS National University of Singapore] at 16:06 06 November 2015
o
Figure 3. Summary of the major dimensions of the interior. Parallel to the work described above, other design activities led to the following features: • Front wheel drive. The reason For this was that with the engine placed in Front, a low and unobstructed floor Face could be built, giving ample luggage space. It was also assumed that engine noise could be controlled more easily; • Larger wheels (470mm diam.) than the present vehicle to improve comfort; • Standard headlights with integrated indicator lights. It would be excessively expensive to manufacture special lights For this vehicle as it was to be produced in such small numbers. Integrated indicator lights were decided upon, because otherwise the width of the lights would be too large to fit aesthetically into the vehicle's front. It was found that the headlights used in the Fiat Panda were the most apt; • Flat glass For the windows-the price was the deciding factor; • A large rear door to permit good access for luggage. The exterior was designed in a traditional way. First, visualization techniques were employed, (i.e, sketching), giving a large number of examples in a short period of time. Later, more time-consuming techniques were used, which gave more detailed information. So, pictures were studied of existing cars and vans in particular, because they presented the same height-width ratio. These pictures were pasted on to a collage. Next, sketches were made of the profile, then 3D sketches. From these sketches exteriors were selected that were considered worthwhile for further development into I : 10 scale cardboard models. These models were coloured. A horizontal partition in colour was used to reduce the height optically. From this line of models the most appealing was chosen. This was further developed into a full scale model. It did not reach its final state in one attempt. As it looked rather huge, the roof height was reduced by 4 cm and the rear windows were given a slight slant. Finally accessories like rear view mirror, windscreen wiper, doorhandles and lights were fitted. Figure 4 shows the result. Notwithstanding the measures taken, like lowering the roof line, slanting the rear windows, the horizontal partition in the colour and the application of the accessories,
Downloaded by [NUS National University of Singapore] at 16:06 06 November 2015
Comfort and appearance
419
Downloaded by [NUS National University of Singapore] at 16:06 06 November 2015
tall user will be less, but the smaller user gains comfort, because unused space disappears and he/she gains riding quality. Further analysis showed that lowering the seating height by 20 mm was tolerable. When building the model, it was assumed that flat windows had to be used for price reasons. When we were forced to look further, we learned that single directional curved windows were more expensive, but not as excessive as anticipated. This finding was used in reviewing the design, using curved side windows. This softened the roof edges, reducing the optical height. A transverse cut (see figure 5) shows the result. This is the point we reached when writing this paper. At present we are working on the exterior to incorporate this compromise.
3. Discussion Marketing ergonomics played an important role in this project in different ways. It should be noted that different producer/consumer relations were at stake. On the one hand ergonomics had to be delivered to the design team, whereas finally a product has to be sold to handicapped people. First, consider the role that ergonomics played in this project. As a discipline it had to maintain itself amongst the other disciplines involved in the realization ofthis design process. This meant that ergonomics input sometimes had to compete with input from the other disciplines. (The project team often has to compare apples and oranges.) The task of choosing between the exterior looks and seating comfort is an example. In general, one discipline has to give in to some extent, in favour of some aspects of another. Confidence is the key to accepting a compromise. It is obvious that confidence should exist between the parties concerned, because it is sometimes not at once clear that an agreed compromise will be an improvement. This uncertainty may last for a long time, even after market introduction. It is the task ofthe ergonomist to clarify what he/she wants and why. When working together you never make a strong point by just stating that it should be 'such and such', without further argument. It should be made
Figure5. Transverse cross-section ofthe vehicle. The left sideshowstheformer design, the right shows the new design with the curved windows as decided upon in the compromize.
420
Comfort and appearance
Downloaded by [NUS National University of Singapore] at 16:06 06 November 2015
clear to the other disciplines, by means of sound arguments, why they should give in in favour of ergonomics. Finally, consider the relationship between producer and consumer, i.e., between IOP/HG, the TUs from Delft and Eindhoven and Messrs. Waaijenberg on one side and the user, the handicapped person, on the other. It remains to be seen whether the marketing of the product will be successful. No final judgement can be given as yet. During this project, attempts were made to adapt the product to users wishes. This was done by means ofthe questionnaire and one user trial. Further user trials are planned, to ensure that the product will meet the user's requirements. In this way we hope to create an aid that will make life easier for handicapped people.
References KIRCHNER, J. H. and ROIlMERT, W. 1974, Ergonomische Leitregeln zu menschengerechter Arbeitsgestaltung, Katalog: Arbeitswissenschaftlige Richtfinien uber die Menschengerechte Gestaltung der Arbeit (Carl Hansen Verlag Miinchen, Wien). MARINISSEN, A. H. and OLDENKAMP, I. 1989, Design and development of a powered vehicle for : handicapped people, Journal of Medical Engineering and Technology, 13, 149-155. MCCORMICK, E. J. and SANDERS, M. S. 1982, Human Factors in Engineering and Design (Tata McGraw-Hili Publishing Company Ltd., New Delhi). MOlENBROEK,1. F. M. and DIRKEN, J. M. 1984, Dined-tabellen (TV-Delft, Faculteit Industriee1 Ontwerpen).
V n projet est realise dans Ie but de developper un vehicle individuel, couvert et motorise pour personnes handicapes. L'objet principal est que ee vehicule repondra aux besoins des handicapes d'une maniere satisfaisante. Malgre eela les parties participantes ont du faire des choix qui pourraient compromettre la realization de eet objet. Cela etait particulierernent evident en projetant l'interieur au profit des personnes grandes d'une part et l'expression esthetique de l'exterieur en diminuant la hauteur du vehicule d'autre part. Marketing ergonomics jouait un grande role en maniant cette problematique. Es wurde ein Projekt durchgefiihrt, das zum Ziel hatte ein individuelles motonsrertes iiberdachtes Fahrzeug fiir Behinderte zu entwicklen. Ziel des Projektes ist, dass das Fahrzeug den Anforderungen des Behinderten optimal entspricht. Trotzdem musste von den zusammenarbeitenden Disziplinen Wahlen getroffen werden, die gerade dieses Ziel gefahrdeten. Dieses traf ganz besonders zu bei einerseits der Feststellung der Masse des Interieurs fiir grosse Fahrer, andererseits bei der Formgestaltung des Exterieurs, wobei versucht wurde die Hohe des Fahrzeuges-aus iisthetischen Griinden-herabzusetzen. Marketing ergonomics spielte beim hantieren dieser Problematik eine wichtige Rolle.
ISSN: 0014-0139 (Print) 1366-5847 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/terg20
Comfort and appearance I. OLDENKAMP To cite this article: I. OLDENKAMP (1990) Comfort and appearance, Ergonomics, 33:4, 413-420, DOI: 10.1080/00140139008927145 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00140139008927145
Published online: 27 Mar 2007.
Submit your article to this journal
Article views: 25
View related articles
Full Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at http://www.tandfonline.com/action/journalInformation?journalCode=terg20 Download by: [NUS National University of Singapore]
Date: 06 November 2015, At: 16:06
ERGONOMICS, 1990, VOL. 33, No.4, 413-420
Comfort and appearance I.
OLDENKAMP
Faculty of Industrial Design Engineering, Product Ergonomics Group, Delft University of Technology, Jaffalaan 9, 2628 BX Delft, The Netherlands
Downloaded by [NUS National University of Singapore] at 16:06 06 November 2015
Keywords: Marketing ergonomics; Individual; Aids; Transport; Handicap.
A project is being carried out with the aim to develop an individual, engine-driven, covered vehiclefor handicapped people. The prime object is that this vehicle should meet the requirements of the handicapped. Nevertheless, choices had to be made by the parties concerned that could have violated this goal. In particular, this was experienced when designing the interior to accommodate large persons on the one hand and meeting the aesthetic requirements of the exterior, which called for a smaller height, on the other. Marketing ergonomics was used to deal with this problem.
I. Introduction At Delft University of Technology a development project is in progress to design an engine-driven vehicle for handicapped people. This project is being carred out jointly by the department of Ergonomics, the Technical University in Eindhoven and Messrs. Waaijenberg in Veenendaal, the latter being the manufacturer of these vehicles in The Netherlands. From the outset it was recognized that ergonomics should be a major issue in this project, but its importance should be shared with the other items involved, such as appearance, ease of assembly, price etc. It is the task of the ergonomist to level his interest with those of the other disciplines to the benefit of the final product. The way in which this task was performed during this project will be described in this paper by means of a dilemma which occurred. It should be noted that this is not one dilemma, in fact designing implies a continuous choice between alternative solutions. The dilemma described here deals with conflicting interests between exterior appearance and usefulness. This dilemma was chosen because it played such an important role in this project. This paper describes in detail how the dilemma was dealt with. A more complete description of the project has been presented in Marinissen and Oldenkamp (1989). The project has not been completed as yet. At present a first complete prototype is being built.
2. Project 2.1. Problem Mobility is one of the prime needs of human beings. For almost everything human beings do, it is necessary to move from one place to another. If one's mobility is hampered by a disfunction ofthe body, one is truly handicapped. Our need to be mobile can be easily illustrated. Look at the artefacts that we employ to improve our mobility beyond the restraints of the human body: bicycles, cars and an entire public transport system;just to reach any place in the world we wish to go. We must also be aware ofthe fact that we require some physical fitness to use these means of transport. OOl~139/90 S3{)()
© 1990 Taylor
& Francis Ltd.
Downloaded by [NUS National University of Singapore] at 16:06 06 November 2015
414
I. Oldenkamp
For people with physical handicaps, aids have been developed to relieve them to some extent. No matter how cleverly designed they may be, they are just aids to alleviate the result of a physical handicap. They never match up to a healthy body. Furthermore it can be noted that a wide range of aids is required. This is illustrated by the large number of different wheelchairs that are available for different situations. There are wheelchairs to be used at home, on the street, folding, with or without an engine, sports wheelchairs, etc. So if a new wheelchair is to be designed, it is important from a marketing point of view, to establish the market position of this new product: which partial problem of mobility should this wheelchair solve and what other products already solve related mobility problems? In attempting to describe the mobility of a person, two variables appear to play an important role: the distance to be travelled and the time needed to cover this distance. Mobility in the interior of a house calls for a low speed as distances are small. Outside there is a need to travel at a higher speed as the distances are much longer. Different means of transport are already available to the handicapped. In figure I an attempt is made to compare these different means of transport. Figure 1 shows that an engine-driven wheelchair is applicable outside for the handicapped. This is particularly so if the handicapped person does not possess a (modified) private car or if he/she does not live near a bus stop. This fact has been realized and consequently a range of different engine-driven wheelchairs has been designed, among them one which
(
home
out door
)
-;;
Il 10
>
d {m I
4
1. 2. 3. 4.
healthy person, walking/running person being carried
man-powered wheel chair powered vehicle for handicapped persons 5. public transport (bus)
0.01
Figure 1. Relation between travelling speed (V) and distance to cover(d)for different means of transport. The area under the curves denotes the combination of (V) and (d)that can be accomplished with the particular aid.
Downloaded by [NUS National University of Singapore] at 16:06 06 November 2015
416
I. Oldenkamp
Downloaded by [NUS National University of Singapore] at 16:06 06 November 2015
was done partially for practical reasons, as Messrs. Waaijenberg keep records of all their customers, but it was also assumed that users of the new vehicle would be similar to the present users of 'Arola', One hundred and fifty-seven questionnaires were returned. Analysis of this information showed that: (I) There is an equal percentage of male and female users; (2) The average age was 62·3 years. The youngest was 17 years old, the oldest was 88 years of age; (3) The average body weight was 71'3kg, the lightest person weighed 44 kg, the heaviest 98 kg; (4) The average body length was 169'6cm, the smallest was 142cm, the largest 192cm. The handicap most frequently recorded concerned the legs. Poliomyelitis or multiple sclerosis was the next most frequent handicap. The rest of the people in the poll suffered from various deficiencies like restricted sight, limited arm functions, heart or lung problems or a bad spine. With respect to the use of the vehicle, it appears that 50% of the owners used their vehicle more than seven times per week. The largest distance recorded was 300 km. It was also noted that one quarter of the users had been involved in a traffic accident. A number of shortcomings were noted. The main problems were: (I) Insufficient luggage space and poor admittance to the space available; (2) Bad seating comfort caused by limited height between seat and roof, and too narrow seats, especially if two people had to be seated side by side. The latter remark relates to the bench width of only 98 cm which is due to the legislative restricted vehicle width of I m. 2.2.2. Analysis: Based on the information obtained, an analysis was performed on the interior space and the layout of displays and controls. Points of reference were the body dimensions and the actions a person employs when using the vehicle. (The latter can be seen as a structured list of subsequent actions taken by the user, from which a list of requirements is derived. This list of requirements is used as a guideline throughout the design process.) Doors were designed keeping in mind the implied improvements on accessibility for both the user and luggage. A criterion for. a good seating position is ease of getting in and out of the seat. To board the vehicle, the user either steps from the pavement into the vehicle or he/she shifts over from a wheelchair. Both situations require an adequate seating height, as is found in trucks. Once this has been established from tables giving human dimensions, the interior dimensions in the lateral plane can be derived. In this study the data from Kirchner and Rohmert (1974) and Molenbroek and Dirken (1984) were used. The position of the steering wheel was taken from McCormick and Sanders (1982).In figure 3 the main dimensions have been summarized. To test if all the data were interpreted well, a trial model was built. This model was tested in user trials in which 20 subjects participated. The subjects were asked to perform tasks such as boarding and leaving the vehicle and packing and unpacking luggage. They were asked to comment on seating and layout of displays and controls. The results of these tests confirmed that the theoretically-derived information was interpreted well. Once this had been established, work could be started on the exterior design.
Comfort and appearance
417
.
Downloaded by [NUS National University of Singapore] at 16:06 06 November 2015
o
Figure 3. Summary of the major dimensions of the interior. Parallel to the work described above, other design activities led to the following features: • Front wheel drive. The reason For this was that with the engine placed in Front, a low and unobstructed floor Face could be built, giving ample luggage space. It was also assumed that engine noise could be controlled more easily; • Larger wheels (470mm diam.) than the present vehicle to improve comfort; • Standard headlights with integrated indicator lights. It would be excessively expensive to manufacture special lights For this vehicle as it was to be produced in such small numbers. Integrated indicator lights were decided upon, because otherwise the width of the lights would be too large to fit aesthetically into the vehicle's front. It was found that the headlights used in the Fiat Panda were the most apt; • Flat glass For the windows-the price was the deciding factor; • A large rear door to permit good access for luggage. The exterior was designed in a traditional way. First, visualization techniques were employed, (i.e, sketching), giving a large number of examples in a short period of time. Later, more time-consuming techniques were used, which gave more detailed information. So, pictures were studied of existing cars and vans in particular, because they presented the same height-width ratio. These pictures were pasted on to a collage. Next, sketches were made of the profile, then 3D sketches. From these sketches exteriors were selected that were considered worthwhile for further development into I : 10 scale cardboard models. These models were coloured. A horizontal partition in colour was used to reduce the height optically. From this line of models the most appealing was chosen. This was further developed into a full scale model. It did not reach its final state in one attempt. As it looked rather huge, the roof height was reduced by 4 cm and the rear windows were given a slight slant. Finally accessories like rear view mirror, windscreen wiper, doorhandles and lights were fitted. Figure 4 shows the result. Notwithstanding the measures taken, like lowering the roof line, slanting the rear windows, the horizontal partition in the colour and the application of the accessories,
Downloaded by [NUS National University of Singapore] at 16:06 06 November 2015
Comfort and appearance
419
Downloaded by [NUS National University of Singapore] at 16:06 06 November 2015
tall user will be less, but the smaller user gains comfort, because unused space disappears and he/she gains riding quality. Further analysis showed that lowering the seating height by 20 mm was tolerable. When building the model, it was assumed that flat windows had to be used for price reasons. When we were forced to look further, we learned that single directional curved windows were more expensive, but not as excessive as anticipated. This finding was used in reviewing the design, using curved side windows. This softened the roof edges, reducing the optical height. A transverse cut (see figure 5) shows the result. This is the point we reached when writing this paper. At present we are working on the exterior to incorporate this compromise.
3. Discussion Marketing ergonomics played an important role in this project in different ways. It should be noted that different producer/consumer relations were at stake. On the one hand ergonomics had to be delivered to the design team, whereas finally a product has to be sold to handicapped people. First, consider the role that ergonomics played in this project. As a discipline it had to maintain itself amongst the other disciplines involved in the realization ofthis design process. This meant that ergonomics input sometimes had to compete with input from the other disciplines. (The project team often has to compare apples and oranges.) The task of choosing between the exterior looks and seating comfort is an example. In general, one discipline has to give in to some extent, in favour of some aspects of another. Confidence is the key to accepting a compromise. It is obvious that confidence should exist between the parties concerned, because it is sometimes not at once clear that an agreed compromise will be an improvement. This uncertainty may last for a long time, even after market introduction. It is the task ofthe ergonomist to clarify what he/she wants and why. When working together you never make a strong point by just stating that it should be 'such and such', without further argument. It should be made
Figure5. Transverse cross-section ofthe vehicle. The left sideshowstheformer design, the right shows the new design with the curved windows as decided upon in the compromize.
420
Comfort and appearance
Downloaded by [NUS National University of Singapore] at 16:06 06 November 2015
clear to the other disciplines, by means of sound arguments, why they should give in in favour of ergonomics. Finally, consider the relationship between producer and consumer, i.e., between IOP/HG, the TUs from Delft and Eindhoven and Messrs. Waaijenberg on one side and the user, the handicapped person, on the other. It remains to be seen whether the marketing of the product will be successful. No final judgement can be given as yet. During this project, attempts were made to adapt the product to users wishes. This was done by means ofthe questionnaire and one user trial. Further user trials are planned, to ensure that the product will meet the user's requirements. In this way we hope to create an aid that will make life easier for handicapped people.
References KIRCHNER, J. H. and ROIlMERT, W. 1974, Ergonomische Leitregeln zu menschengerechter Arbeitsgestaltung, Katalog: Arbeitswissenschaftlige Richtfinien uber die Menschengerechte Gestaltung der Arbeit (Carl Hansen Verlag Miinchen, Wien). MARINISSEN, A. H. and OLDENKAMP, I. 1989, Design and development of a powered vehicle for : handicapped people, Journal of Medical Engineering and Technology, 13, 149-155. MCCORMICK, E. J. and SANDERS, M. S. 1982, Human Factors in Engineering and Design (Tata McGraw-Hili Publishing Company Ltd., New Delhi). MOlENBROEK,1. F. M. and DIRKEN, J. M. 1984, Dined-tabellen (TV-Delft, Faculteit Industriee1 Ontwerpen).
V n projet est realise dans Ie but de developper un vehicle individuel, couvert et motorise pour personnes handicapes. L'objet principal est que ee vehicule repondra aux besoins des handicapes d'une maniere satisfaisante. Malgre eela les parties participantes ont du faire des choix qui pourraient compromettre la realization de eet objet. Cela etait particulierernent evident en projetant l'interieur au profit des personnes grandes d'une part et l'expression esthetique de l'exterieur en diminuant la hauteur du vehicule d'autre part. Marketing ergonomics jouait un grande role en maniant cette problematique. Es wurde ein Projekt durchgefiihrt, das zum Ziel hatte ein individuelles motonsrertes iiberdachtes Fahrzeug fiir Behinderte zu entwicklen. Ziel des Projektes ist, dass das Fahrzeug den Anforderungen des Behinderten optimal entspricht. Trotzdem musste von den zusammenarbeitenden Disziplinen Wahlen getroffen werden, die gerade dieses Ziel gefahrdeten. Dieses traf ganz besonders zu bei einerseits der Feststellung der Masse des Interieurs fiir grosse Fahrer, andererseits bei der Formgestaltung des Exterieurs, wobei versucht wurde die Hohe des Fahrzeuges-aus iisthetischen Griinden-herabzusetzen. Marketing ergonomics spielte beim hantieren dieser Problematik eine wichtige Rolle.
