Biomechanics Analysis of the Firefighters’ Thorax Movement on Personal Protective Equipment during Lifting Task Using Inertial Measurement Unit Motion Capture

Muhamad Nurul Hisyam Yunus, Mohd Hafiidz Jaafar (), Ahmad Sufril Azlan Mohamed, Nur Zaidi Azraai, Norhaniza Amil and Remy Md Zein
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Muhamad Nurul Hisyam Yunus: School of Industrial Technology, Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM), Penang 11800, Malaysia
Mohd Hafiidz Jaafar: School of Industrial Technology, Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM), Penang 11800, Malaysia
Ahmad Sufril Azlan Mohamed: School of Computer Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM), Penang 11800, Malaysia
Nur Zaidi Azraai: School of the Arts, Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM), Penang 11800, Malaysia
Norhaniza Amil: School of Industrial Technology, Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM), Penang 11800, Malaysia
Remy Md Zein: National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), Bangi 43650, Malaysia

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 21, 1-16

Abstract: Back injury is a common musculoskeletal injury reported among firefighters (FFs) due to their nature of work and personal protective equipment (PPE). The nature of the work associated with heavy lifting tasks increases FFs’ risk of back injury. This study aimed to assess the biomechanics movement of FFs on personal protective equipment during a lifting task. A set of questionnaires was used to identify the prevalence of musculoskeletal pain experienced by FFs. Inertial measurement unit (IMU) motion capture was used in this study to record the body angle deviation and angular acceleration of FFs’ thorax extension. The descriptive analysis was used to analyze the relationship between the FFs’ age and body mass index with the FFs’ thorax movement during the lifting task with PPE and without PPE. Sixty-three percent of FFs reported lower back pain during work, based on the musculoskeletal pain questionnaire. The biomechanics analysis of thorax angle deviation and angular acceleration has shown that using FFs PPE significantly causes restricted movement and limited mobility for the FFs. As regards human factors, the FFs’ age influences the angle deviation while wearing PPE and FFs’ BMI influences the angular acceleration without wearing PPE during the lifting activity.

Keywords: angular kinematic; personal protective equipment; motion capture; ergonomic risk assessment; biomechanics (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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