University of Benghazi - Faculty of Engineering ‫ كلية الهندسة‬- ‫جامعة بنغازي‬

‫قسم الهندسة الصناعية و نظم التصنيع‬

Industrial and Manufacturing Systems Engineering Department

Course: IE 464 (Human Factors Engineering) Medterm exam.

Semester: Fall 2017 Date: 26 / 11 /2017
Instructor: Ahmad Altaboli Time allowed: 1.5 hours

Student name:_____________________________________________ Student no:__________________

1- Show whether each of the following statements is true or false. (15*2=30 points)

T F 1. Human Factors applies theory, principles, data, and other methods to design in order to
optimize human well-being and overall system performance.

T F 2. Organizational ergonomics concerns include topics such as mental workload and skilled
performance.

T F 3. If seats are well designed, it is not necessary for sedentary workers to have frequent
breaks in which they should stand up and walk around.

T F 4. CTDs are largely due to the cumulative effects of repetitive, prolonged exposures to
physical strain and stress.

T F 5. Subjective rating scales and EMG can be used to measure local muscle fatigue.

T F 6. Maximum Physical work capacity increases as the duration of work increases.

T F 7. luminance is a measure of the amount of light falling on a surface

T F 8. Rod cells have low light sensitivity while cone cells are highly sensitive to light

T F 9. It is difficult to read print in poorly illuminated viewing conditions due to the decrease of
contrast sensitivity

T F 10. For reading print, for single, isolated words, using uppercase is as better as lowercase

T F 11. The decibel is a dimensionless unit related to the logarithm of the ratio of the measured
sound pressure level to a reference level.

T F 12. Use of restricted vocabulary is one of the signal enhancement procedures that can be used
for noise remediation when the OSHA’s TWA noise level is below the action limit.

T F 13. The most effective method of reducing noise in the workplace is by the appropriate and
careful selection of tools and equipment.

T F 14. Alarms must be designed to be heard above the background ambient noise even if that
means that the alarm will be above the danger level for hearing.

T F 15. A good example of considering tactile sense in design is the Braille alphabet that utilize
this sense to convey both spatial and symbolic information for the blind

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2- A population has a mean forearm length of 35 cm with a standard deviation of 1.5 cm.

a. Calculate the following:

i. The 10th percentile of the population.
ii. The 90th percentile of the population.

b. Calculate the length of the arc of the normal working area on a work-surface to fit 90% of the
population. Show each of the following in your answer:
 If the dimension is an upper limit or lower limit.
 The percentile value.
 Clothing allowances (if any).
(10+10= 20 points)

3- Certain items arrive at a packaging station by a conveyer that is 75 cm high. Each item weighs 10 kg,
and the horizontal distance of the handles is 25 cm from worker's ankles. The station is staffed by a
worker, moving the items from the conveyer to an outgoing J-hook conveyer that passes in front of
him/her at a height of 100 cm with a rate of 1 box every 5 minutes over a 2-hour shift. Assume good
coupling quality.
a. Calculate the load index (LI) for this activity and comment on the result.
b. How much can the weight of the item be increased without affecting the safety of the worker?
(10+10= 20 points)

4- The energy-expenditure rate of a physical work is 5 kcal/min and the work is performed by a healthy
female worker on an 8-hour shift basis.

a. Should the worker perform this work for 8 hours without rest? If not, determine the required work-
rest schedule.
b. Suppose the worker performs the work for only 1 hour, will your result in (a) change? Explain.
(10+10= 20 points)

5- Use the step method to estimate VO2max for an individual with the following test results.

Measurement Value
Gender male
Individual’s weight in Kg 70
Individual’s age in years 23
Step height (cm) 15
Average frequency of stepping (steps/min) during steady state 25
Individual's average heart rate (bmp) during steady state 120

(15 points)

End of Questions … Good Luck!

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