Having originally studied Design with Engineering Materials BSc, before moving into a successful horticultural career, I have been interested in human factor-related issues throughout my working life.
Major project
Comparative analysis of different techniques to determine the hand-transmitted vibration to users of a tracked armoured fighting vehicle
A tracked armoured fighting vehicle was used to investigate transmissibility of vibrations through the controls
The aim of the project was to investigate if wearable triaxial accelerometers record vibration magnitude values that are relatable to control-mounted triaxial accelerometers, fitted in accordance with ISO 5349-1, for operators of tracked military vehicles.
An illustrative picture to show the type of vehicle referred to in this project. The exact vehicle cannot be named for security reasons.
UK MOD © Crown copyright 2022 (Maher, B. 2022. Exercise Arrow 2022 [Online]. [24/08/2022]. Available from: https://www.defenceimagery.mod.uk/Home/Search?Query=45169845.jpg&Type=Filename)
Two triaxial accelerometers were used on each hand and compared to accelerometers fixed to the controls of the vehicle.
Triaxial accelerometers were fitted to the controls of the commander’s position in a tracked armoured vehicle in accordance with ISO 5349. A single participant was fitted with 4 wearable accelerometers – in the palm and on the wrist of both lower arms. All sensors were connected to data loggers for later analysis. The vehicle conducted 5 distinct runs at a spread of speeds, both cross-country and on a tarmac road surface, with a minimum of 300s at each speed.
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Software was used for signal processing and analysis
The data was processed in nCode Glyphworks software to calculate Wh weighted RMS and dominant frequency for each axis before combining the weighted RMS data into an RSS value for each sensor. This was analysed in SPSS software to establish if either of the wearable sensors showed any correlation to the ISO-compliant sensor on the respective side (Left or Right).
The results showed a decrease in vibration magnitude recorded the further from the control stick the sensor was. Analysis of the results showed correlations were non-significant (p = 0.625), (p = 0.708), (p = 0.308), (p = 0.312).
As non-significant correlations were found; wrist and palm mounted sensors cannot predict vibration recorded at the ISO location. The limited sample size resulted in a lack of comparable data that may have resulted in the non-significance of correlations.
Alex Prain
Major project
Comparative analysis of different techniques to determine the hand-transmitted vibration to users of a tracked armoured fighting vehicle
Work Experience
Before starting the MSc, I was Head Gardener at the National Trust property Buckland Abbey in Devon. I had been with the National Trust since 2013 when I started as a trainee and worked my way up to the Head Gardener grade. The main challenges along the way were the daily management of staff and volunteers, responsibility for health and safety within the garden area of the property, budgetary responsibility along with project planning and funding securing.
While studying for my undergraduate degree, I completed a year in industry (2008). I worked for a small company in North Wales called Amdro who designed and built modular camper van interiors. I was involved in design, CAD works, prototyping as well as construction and fabrication.