Optimum product design and development through creative engineering methodology

In a passenger vehicle the main object is the seat that has to be not only ergonomically suitable to the commuter, also economically viable to the establishment. It is one of the crucial component to be considered when defining comfort in a moving vehicle. Different levels of comfort in diverse conditions are dictated by combination of static and dynamic factors. This research attempts to study the comfort zone of a bus passenger seat through subjective and objective evaluations at the human-seat interface. To study the subjective evaluation through direct response, an accelerometer to measure vibration on the seat is used while commuting between defined destinations. For the objective evaluation, analytical tests were conducted with dampening materials. The study is in uncontrolled condition that refers to the road trials or field tests carried out in a moving vehicle which produced random vibrations. The results showed that, the road conditions effects besides the postures and size of the passenger. A seat structure proposed with dampener properties; prove to be more effective in realising seat vibration comfort. The comfort values of this proposed seat are higher than the values for the current existing seat arrangement. A lower discomfort means journey with less fatigue. By improving the seat stricture using the said method for the vehicle seats, such as public transport buses, could provide better ride comfort for local purposes.