An Ergonomic Assessment of the Driver Seat of Common Car Models in the Philippines

The number of registered private vehicles in the Philippines increases by 300 to 400 thousand per year, with around 9.2 million vehicles registered and 5.8 million licenses and permits issued in 2016. One of the factors that plays an important role in the comfort of the driver is the car seat. Previous studies have shown that driving for more than 4 h may induce body pains such as lower back, neck, and foot pain. This study investigates the possible mismatch between the driver seat specifications and anthropometric measurement of Filipinos. Five of the most common car models sold in the Philippines were chosen. Specification of the driver seats were measured and compared to Filipino anthropometric measurements. In addition, driver discomfort was also examined by performing surveys to drivers of the selected car models using the Nordic Questionnaire and likert scale comfortability rating. Common problematic parts for all car models are the seat length, headrest height, and legroom (also represented as distance from seat to pedals for anthropometric analysis) which were consistent for all evaluation tools used: anthropometric assessment, Nordic Questionnaire, and Comfortability rating.