Design, Simulation and Evaluation of an Ergonomic Seat Cushion for Decreasing Transmitted Vibration to the Driver

Tractor operators get exposed in a wide range of vibrations, so that they lead to discomfort and long term or permanent disorders. One solution for this problem is decreasing transmitted vibration to the driver by selecting a suitable seat cushion. Therefore, an ergonomic seat cushion was designed for Iranian operators especially and compared with the available seat. Both of seat cushions were analyzed in the frequency range of 3 to 66 Hz in four excited vibrations of 5.0, 1, 5.1 and 2 m/s2 for three groups of drivers with masses of 55, 70 and 85 kg by using finite element method. The results of this study showed that the ergonomic seatpan cushion can provide more comfort and convenience for the driver in excited vibrations range and this seat cushion can be a suitable alternative to the available seat-pan cushion. However, the investigation of the output vibration magnitude on the seat backrest regions showed that the available seat backrest provides more comfort and convenience for the driver in comparison with the ergonomic seat cushion. Therefore, the combination of the ergonomic seat-pan cushion and the available seat backrest can improve the efficiency of the available seat cushion of the tractor to reduce transmitted vibrations to the driver.