An investigation of occupational hand-arm vibration

Because of the complex dynamics of the human body, no analytical model can duplicate exactly all the effects experienced by the hand-arm system when subjected to transmission and absorption of vibration. In an attempt to obtain reliable physical measurements of this phenomenon, the attachment of accelerometers has been a major source of difficulty. With surface mounting, motion of the skin and fatty tissue must be accounted for. Once this is accomplished, criteria of acceleration (both magnitude and frequency) can be defined. Ultimately recommendations can be made to tool designers and manufacturers to help them avoid critical responses or resonance areas, thus offering a greater measure of protection to workers who will be using these tools for most of their productive lives.