Next generation device for recording daylong hand-arm vibration and grip force waveforms

Hand-arm vibration syndrome (A) can potentially cause severe upper extremity impairment and is a significant occupational health risk in many industrial settings. To better understand vibration exposure in a field environment, a next-generation device for daylong data capture of vibration and grip force waveforms was developed. The new device consists of a signal conditioning board for sensor configuration and a PDA device to store waveforms to high capacity flash memory. System performance was compared with previous field vibration exposure instrumentation during a representative carpentry task. Results demonstrate the ability of the new device to generate similar data to previous instrumentation as well as new frequency content information for specific exposures that was not previously available for field measurements. The ability to apply more advanced signal processing techniques to long duration field data will aid in developing more accurate exposure-response models for hand-arm vibration disorders.