Improving Living and Working Conditions in Space
The Anthropometry and Biomechanics Facility (ABF) team collects human body shape and performance data to improve hardware accommodation and enhance productivity and operational efficiency in space and during ground training. Their research includes accommodation, biomechanics and ergonomics studies that deal with issues humans will encounter while living, working, and exploring in space.
The ABF supports the following focus areas:
- Human Solutions whole body photogrammetric scanner
- Human Solutions foot scanner
- 3DMD whole body photogrammetric scanner
- ARTEC EVA photogrammetric scanners
- ARTEC Spider photogrammetric scanner
- Vicon™ MX motion capture system
- Six degree-of-freedom force plates, including underwater force plates
- Load cells and pressure transducers
- Anthropometers and goniometers
- FARO Arm coordinate measuring machine
- Biodex, Primus, Jamar Hydraulic Hand Dynamometer
- Noraxon Electromyography (including wireless EMG)
- AnthroScan, ScanWorx, Polyworks, GeoMagic, and ARTEC software
Fun Fact: Two people of the same height and weight can have very different proportions! This must be kept in mind when designing hardware because proportions (and not just minimum and maximum dimensions) can cause issues if not considered during design.
NASA
The ABF has been instrumental in evaluating crew work procedures and equipment, spacesuit design, extravehicular activity (EVA) and intravehicular activity (IVA) issues, EVA/IVA tool design, and EVA/IVA crew-induced loads. This group also is heavily involved in conducting and supporting projects for evaluating space suit and human performance data for future missions. It is one of the few facilities in the world that has gathered both suited and unsuited human strength and mobility data relevant to Earth, lunar, and Martian gravitational environments.
Hardware and software available in the ABF include:
- Human Solutions whole body photogrammetric scanner
- Human Solutions foot scanner
- 3DMD whole body photogrammetric scanner
- ARTEC EVA photogrammetric scanners
- ARTEC Spider photogrammetric scanner
- Vicon™ MX motion capture system
- Six degree-of-freedom force plates, including underwater force plates
- Load cells and pressure transducers
- Anthropometers and goniometers
- FARO Arm coordinate measuring machine
- Biodex, Primus, Jamar Hydraulic Hand Dynamometer
- Noraxon Electromyography (including wireless EMG)
- AnthroScan, ScanWorx, Polyworks, GeoMagic, and ARTEC software
Points of Contact
Elizabeth Benson
Linh Vu
Nathaniel Newby
