I am living in The Hague, The Netherlands and I am lecturer and researcher at the Faculty of Industrial Design Enginering, Delft University of Technology. I started my career as physiotherapist in 1988, and I realised very soon, already during my study, that the prevention of Musculo Skeletal Disorders (MSD) could be a promising field to work on, in stead of trying to help people heal themselves -that is the essence of physiotherapy-. To do so, I started a study in occupational health for physiotherapists in Enschede. It was there, in 1989, when I was introduced in the world of anthropometrics (yes, by Johan Molenbroek). I got a position as coordinator in ergonomics practicals at the TUDelft in 1990. By then, I couldn’t have imagined to be still active in that field till now, 2020. The field of anthropometrics has grown, from knowledge about growth and size of adults to all kind of segments of our population. From the good old Human Scales to digital computer models like ADAPS, also developed at our Faculty. From 1D to 2D with a handy tool for designers (ellipse) to 3D. it took me a while to realise that the step to 3D is so much more than just an ‘extra dimension’, from body height to, for example, the combination of length and circumference, which we both already knew, but never studied as a combination. But it is so much more…My eyes were opened when I realised that circumference doesn’t say much about the form of that segment…it is just a number (so, 1D). And the challenge we have, as scientists, to help designers understand this and make them able to use 3D data in their designs! With all kind of difficulties in gathering 3D data from a user group for their particular design. Yes, making a 3D scan is kind of easy, when you have the right tools. But gathering data from more people, to analyse these 3D data statistically, that is really tough and the need for computer scientists and 3D designers to do this is clear. And the complexity rises even more when trying to combine a statistical 3D body shape from a certain target group with a product that need to fit close to the body like personal protection gear such as face masks, spectacles, surf suits and many more! You can understand that this topic is more important than ever, an it is also related to new possibilities for production like there is 3D printing. I am proud to be part of this next step in the journey, with this new forum and other tools on Dined. I am looking forward to meet you and share knowledge, experience and design challenges.
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Hi Anton,
Welcome to the forum. Great to have you here!
Kind regards,
Toon.