applsci-logo

Journal Browser

Journal Browser

Seating Comfort and Biomechanical Application

A special issue of Applied Sciences (ISSN 2076-3417). This special issue belongs to the section "Applied Biosciences and Bioengineering".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 November 2024 | Viewed by 2075

Special Issue Editors


E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Engineering and Design, College of Engineering and Design, Shibaura Institute of Technology, Tokyo 135-8548, Japan
Interests: seating comfort; human modeling; automotive ergonomics; biomechanics; design science

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Univ Lyon, Univ Gustave Eiffel, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, LBMC UMR_T9406, F69622 Lyon, France
Interests: digital human modeling; biomechanics; ergonomics; seating; automotive

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

We spend most of the day in a sitting position, excluding sleeping time. For this reason, there are various types of "sitting" for various people in various places, and there are chairs and seats that support them. In fact, we unconsciously use many different types of seating.

Our lives have changed drastically in the recent COVID-19 situation. The need for a better living environment has increased due to an increase in the amount of time spent at home working at a desk as a result of the spread of remote work. The importance of improving the comfort of chairs and indoor environments has increased significantly. On the other hand, the health effects of continuous sitting posture have also become a topic of discussion.

In addition, the comfort of vehicles is also undergoing reconsideration, as automatic driving technology is converting drivers into passengers. Furthermore, new forms of mobility, such as new types of aircraft and small mobility vehicles, are being born.

In other words, a paradigm shift in seating is in motion.

In this Special Issue, we would like to focus on the latest research results on sitting comfort and research methodologies, especially the application of biomechanics.

In comfort research, many new methods have been developed that are not only based on conventional methodologies but also on small wearable sensors, image recognition, and many other classical methods. In addition, more detailed human body models, personalized models, and open-source analysis systems have been developed.

We encourage you to submit your latest research results on these comfort-related topics. We look forward to hearing from you.

Prof. Dr. Akinari Hirao
Dr. Xuguang Wang
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Applied Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • seating comfort
  • sitting posture
  • pressure distribution
  • human model for comfort
  • comfort measurement
  • prolonged sitting
  • fatigue
  • posture monitoring
  • sedentary work
  • dynamic comfort

Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue

  • Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
  • Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
  • Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
  • External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
  • e-Book format: Special Issues with more than 10 articles can be published as dedicated e-books, ensuring wide and rapid dissemination.

Further information on MDPI's Special Issue polices can be found here.

Published Papers (2 papers)

Order results
Result details
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

12 pages, 3240 KiB  
Article
Physiological Responses Related to Sitting Comfort Due to Changes in Seat Parameters
by Jongseong Gwak, Kazuyoshi Arata, Takumi Yamakawa, Hideo Tobata, Motoki Shino and Yoshihiro Suda
Appl. Sci. 2024, 14(17), 7870; https://doi.org/10.3390/app14177870 - 4 Sep 2024
Viewed by 468
Abstract
The design of vehicle cabin seats is crucial in transportation, as it directly affects the safety and comfort of both drivers and passengers. To design seat parameters that enhance sitting comfort, a quantitative evaluation of sitting comfort involving an understanding of users’ physiological [...] Read more.
The design of vehicle cabin seats is crucial in transportation, as it directly affects the safety and comfort of both drivers and passengers. To design seat parameters that enhance sitting comfort, a quantitative evaluation of sitting comfort involving an understanding of users’ physiological responses is necessary. This study aimed to assess users’ physiological responses to relaxation induced by changes in seat parameters using electroencephalography and electrocardiography. We examined the physiological responses and subjective evaluations of relaxation in fifteen participants, focusing on the effects of reclining, ottoman, and slab. The results demonstrated an improvement in the subjective level of relaxation with changes in all seat parameters set here. However, central nervous system responses and autonomic nervous system reactions varied based on alterations in posture angles and seat pressure distributions. This underscores the importance of physiological markers, encompassing indicators of autonomic and central nervous system responses, in evaluating relaxation in relation to changes in posture angles and seat pressure distribution. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Seating Comfort and Biomechanical Application)
Show Figures

Figure 1

24 pages, 5038 KiB  
Article
Development of a 7-DOF Biodynamic Model for a Seated Human and a Hybrid Optimization Method for Estimating Human-Seat Interaction Parameters
by Abeeb Opeyemi Alabi, Byoung-Gyu Song, Jong-Jin Bae and Namcheol Kang
Appl. Sci. 2023, 13(18), 10065; https://doi.org/10.3390/app131810065 - 6 Sep 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1058
Abstract
Existing biodynamic models adopt apparent mass and seat-to-head transmissibility to predict the response of seated humans to whole-body vibration, limiting their ability to capture the actual response of distinct body segments in different excitation conditions. This study systematically develops a 7-DOF seated human [...] Read more.
Existing biodynamic models adopt apparent mass and seat-to-head transmissibility to predict the response of seated humans to whole-body vibration, limiting their ability to capture the actual response of distinct body segments in different excitation conditions. This study systematically develops a 7-DOF seated human model, a vibration experiment, and a novel hybrid optimization to estimate unknown mechanical parameters and predict the response of different human body segments to vertical vibrations. Experimental results showed that the upper trunk and head were most susceptible to transmitted vibrations. Combining the 7-DOF model and HOM resulted in accelerated optimization, improved numerical stability, and significant minimization of the objective function value compared to conventional algorithms. Notably, the estimated parameters, particularly stiffness, remained consistent regardless of increasing excitation magnitude or change in the body segment data used. Additionally, the model captured the non-linearity in human biodynamics through stiffness softening. These findings are applicable in seating systems optimization for comfort and safety. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Seating Comfort and Biomechanical Application)
Show Figures

Figure 1

Back to TopTop