Individualized workplace ergonomics using motion capture

Production workers suffer from musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) due to excessive workloads that exceed the individual physical capabilities. In order to assess and subsequently reduce the risk to suffer from a MSD at a specific workplace, companies use ergonomic screening methods. However, the current approaches have two major downsides: Firstly, they do not take the individual worker and his/her capabilities into account. Applied thresholds for joint angles or physical loads are standard values that do not address physical limitations, such as age-related loss of flexibility or muscle strength. Secondly, the methods only provide a risk assessment that indicates which workplaces and/or working postures are ergonomically hazardous. Necessary workplace improvements are decoupled from the results and require extensive ergonomic knowledge. This paper presents a method that uses an individualized ergonomics analysis to improve workplaces according to individual needs and helps the industrial engineer to find necessary workplace improvements.