Application of TRIZ and Human Factors Engineering in Swing Seat Improvement
Keywords:
swing, design, human factors, TRIZAbstract
The objectives of this research were: (1) to analyze accident types and injuries of children during using swing; (2) to study student opinion regarding swing seats; and (3) to propose guidelines for improving swing seats using TRIZ and human factors engineering. A case study was a primary school in north-east Thailand. Tools used were a set of questionnaires and TRIZ. There were two parts to the questionnaire. The first part was personal data such as age, gender, and class. The second part was data regarding playing swing, such as accidents and injuries. Subjects were 7–12 years old. The statistics used were descriptive statistics such as frequency, maximum, minimum, and percentage. Data analysis showed that 41.1% of subjects experienced accidents while playing swing, and 27.7% of them fell off swing seats. The most common pattern of injury was abrasion, which accounted for 16.0%. According to children’s opinions related to the swing seat problem, low swing seats accounted for 30.0%, high swing seats accounted for 16.6%, slippery swing seats accounted for 15.3%, and small in width accounted for 6.8%. Using TRIZ to solve a problem of slippery swing seats, the steel used to make swing seats was changed to natural molded rubber with a smooth surface and no sharp point or edge. Using human factors engineering to design dimensions of the swing seat, the 95th percentile of hip breadth (sitting) was used to design seat width, and the 5th percentile of buttock to popliteal was used to design seat depth.
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