Glossary

acute - injuries that result from a single incident.

anthropometry - defining the physical measurements of a person's size and form.   This information is used to design equipment and workplaces to accommodate the majority of users by designing for the extreme individuals (smallest, 5th percentile or largest, 95 percentile) or for an adjustable range. adj. - anthropometric

asymmetry (A) - position of the body that involves twisting at the legs, torso, or shoulders.  When twisting is involved, measure angle that object is displaced from the front of the worker's body.

biomechanics - that field of study involving classical mechanical principles and their relationships as used by or applied to living organisms.

buttock-popliteal length - the horizontal distance from the rearmost surface of the buttock to the back of the lower leg.

cardiovascular - of, relating to, or involving the heart and the blood vessels: cardiovascular disease.

cumulative - injuries that develop gradually over periods of weeks, months, or years as a result of repeated stress.

distance (D) - vertical travel distance of the hands from the origin to the destination of the lift (measured as an absolute value).

egress - exit from a region or space.

frequency (F) - average number of lifts per minute over a 15 minute period.

gastrointestinal  - of or relating to the stomach and intestines: the gastrointestinal tract.

hand coupling (C) - quality of the hand-to-object coupling classified as good, fair, or poor.

horizontal (H) - location of the hands measured as the horizontal distance from the midpoint between the ankles.

ingress - enter a region or space.

length of time - duration of the lifting task classified as short (1 hour), moderate (1-2 hours) or long (2-8 hours).

lifting index (LI) - term that provides a relative estimate of the level of physical stress associated with a particular manual lifting task.  It is the ratio of the actual weight of the load and the recommended weight limit.  It is desirable to design the job to have a lifting index < 1.  A lifting index > 3 identifies a job which should receive immediate attention.

lumbar  region - the region of the spine comprised of the 5 lumbar vertebrate, L1-L5.

musculoskeletal system - the integrated system of muscles, bones and joints in the body.

popliteal height - the vertical distance from the footrest to the underside of the thigh.

Recommended Weight Limit (RWL) - the principal product of the revised NIOSH lifting equation.   It is defined for a specific set of task conditions as the weight of the load that nearly all healthy workers could perform over a substantial period of time (e.g. up to 8 hours) without an increased risk of developing lifting- related low back pain.

ulnar nerve - a spinal nerve innervating generally the medial part of the forearm and hand.

vertical (V) - location of the hands measured as the vertical distance above the floor.