An Ergonomic Evaluation of a Front Support Chair for Forward Leaning Seated Tasks

Abstract

The prevalence of low back pain in industry has contributed to employee days away from work and therefore decreased production. Low back pain is even more pervasive in industries where the work requires the employee to lean forward while performing the task. Leaning forward is natural for tasks that require visual acuity and manual manipulation. Chairs that are usually provided have backrests with lumbar support; however, leaning forward makes the utilization of the backrests insufficient or non-existent. This study explores and examines if a "front-rest" (as opposed to a backrest) provides better support for the employees during the performance of their tasks. Two groups of subjects were used to test a chair that had a backrest and front-rest feature. Each group had 15 men and 15 women whose anthropometric measurements were taken. All subjects completed questionnaires on their comfort in the chair. The subjects then worked on a jigsaw puzzle for an hour, and then completed the same questionnaires. The heart rate of the subjects was monitored throughout the activity. The differences between the before and after results on the questionnaires and heart rate were analyzed statistically. The results showed no difference between the front-rest group and the backrest group. There were trends in the data that indicate more research is needed, and best practices were used. This study represents a baseline that can be used for further study into the issue of low back pain in forward leaning tasks.