Essential design parameters for a Olympic trapeze harness
An exploration towards a new design
N.M.M. Poiesz (TU Delft - Industrial Design Engineering)
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Abstract
Within the Dutch Sailing Organisation research concerning the trapeze harness has been limited. Before starting the research no concrete information concerning the interaction between a trapeze harness and the human body or important design requirements regarding the influence of new boat designs were documented. The purpose of this research was to develop a better understanding of the previously mentioned points and put forth a new harness design based on the insights that were gathered. By means of multiple interviews and user studies, the interaction between harness and sailor was observed. To dig deeper, the physical interaction between harness and sailor was analysed by measuring pressure and load on the body from different harness designs. Providing new insights and a bases for a new harness design. The proposed design focused on improving the freedom of movement of a harness by changing the outline of the harness. In the new design, the harness’ shoulder straps are altered resulting in a harness with back part that is split in a top and bottom half. A prototype was fabricated to validate the design providing recommended improvements for future development.