A body-shaped lumbar-sacral support for improving car-seat comfort

Nowadays the ergonomic study of the driving position is a critical aspect of the design in the automotive field. Indeed, due to the rising needs on the market, car industries are focusing even on internal comfort. The use of the seat could cause some complaints in various regions of our body, especially in the lumbar-sacral one for prolonged postures. Thus, in order to reduce this kind of complaints, a comfort evaluation on a special lumbar support for driver seat has been done. Two prototypes of lumbar/sacral support have been realized: the first one was integrated into the seat and the second one was shaped as a removable pillow (removable support). Fifty participants were asked to rate the perceived comfort in lab tests performed on a seating-buck. Three tests, 5 min each, were performed in three different conditions: standard car seat, car seat with removable support, car seat with integrated support. Both subjective data (by questionnaires) and objective data (pressure at interface between backrest and driver) have been acquired and processed. Correlations between subjective and objective data have been calculated by statistical analysis and showed interesting results about comfort improvement through the adopted solutions

A body-shaped lumbar-sacral support for improving car-seat comfort

BACKGROUND:Nowadays, the ergonomic study of the driving position is a critical aspect of automotive design. Indeed, due to the rising needs on the market, one focus for car industries is to improve the perceived comfort related to the cars’ interior. Driving a car for a prolonged time could cause complaints in some body-regions, especially in the lumbar-sacral area. Thus, special lumbar-sacral supports for driver seat has been proposed for reducing this kind of complaints. OBJECTIVE:Development of two virtual and physical models of lumbar-sacral support for improving both the lumbar/sacral and overall perceived comfort while driving. METHODS:Two prototypes of lumbar/sacral support have been realized: the first one was integrated into the seat, and the second one was shaped as a removable pillow (removable support). Fifty participants were asked to rate the perceived comfort in lab tests performed on a seating-buck by comparing three configurations (5 min each): a standard seat, seat with the removable support, seat with integrated support. Subjective data (by questionnaires) and objective data (interface pressure between backrest and driver) have been acquired and statistically processed. In addition, real driving tests have been performed to test the actual performance of the removable support in term of perceived comfort comparing it with the standard seat. RESULTS:Statistical correlations between subjective and objective data showed interesting results in comfort improvement through the adopted solutions. Real driving tests showed an improvement in comfort perception with the lumbar-sacral support towards the standard seat. CONCLUSIONS:Thanks to the virtual prototyping and the application of previous knowledge, coming from literature and experience, a solution for improving the overall comfort and reduce the lumbar/sacral pain while driving has been developed, tested, and assessed