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 International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics 56 (2016) 150e160

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/ergon

Hand-arm and whole-body vibrations induced in cross motorcycle

and bicycle drivers
L.M. Roseiro a, b, M.A. Neto b, A.M. Amaro b, *, C.J. Alcobia a, M.F. Paulino b
a
Polytechnic Institute of Coimbra, Coimbra Institute of Engineering, Mechanical Engineering Department, Rua Pedro Nunes- Quinta da Nora, 3030-199,
Coimbra, Portugal
b
CEMUC, Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Coimbra, Pinhal de Marrocos, Po
lo II, Rua Luis Reis Santos, 3020-788, Coimbra, Portugal

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: Generally, and particularly at sports, the human body is constantly exposed to physical requests and to tests
Received 1 February 2016 in many different situations. Although the practice of sports is considered a healthy act, there are limits and,
Received in revised form when these limits are reached, the benefits of sport can turn into problems. Thus, the biodynamic response
17 October 2016
method is increasingly being used to study the human injuries induced by external vibrations. Moreover,
Accepted 20 October 2016
the European Directive 2002/44/EC on the minimum health and safety requirements, regarding worker
exposure to risks from physical agents (e.g. vibration), limit the exposure to vibrations. The aim of this
study is to analyze the exposure level of cross motorcycle and of cycling drivers to hand-arm vibration
Keywords:
Hand-arm vibration
(HAV) and to whole-body vibration (WBV). For this research, vibration levels of a common 200 cc cross
Sports ergonomics motorcycle were experimentally measured and the maximum driving time that could be safely used in a
Whole-body vibration stone road was established. Moreover, bicycle vibration measurements were performed using two different
bicycles: a road cycling bike; a bike for track cycling. The road bike was evaluated at three road scenarios:
asphalt; paved; and stone road pavement. The track bike was evaluated in track cycling and rollers. In the
case of cycling the results indicate that impacts and transient vibrations lead to a higher musculoskeletal
request particularly in what concerns shoulders, arms, wrists, knees and spine.
© 2016 Published by Elsevier B.V.

1. Introduction peculiarities into whole-body vibration (WBV) and hand-arm vi-

Disorders of muscle tissues and of their surrounding structures,
i.e., musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs), indicate health problems of
the locomotor apparatus, (Roman-Liu, 2013). MSDs mostly result
from cumulative effects of long-lasting loads of various magnitude,
resulting from a wide range of external factors at the work envi-
ronment and at the daily life. Thus, MSDs depend on both occu-
pational and non-occupational factors (Habib et al., 2012;
Choobineh et al., 2011). Several epidemiological studies have
proved that biomechanical load, vibration and psychosocial factors
may contribute to the development of MSDs in several body parts
(Punnett et al., 2005; Bovenzi, 2008; Smith et al., 2006).
The human exposure to vibrations is classified according to his
* Corresponding author. Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of
Coimbra, Portugal.
E-mail addresses: lroseiro@isec.pt (L.M. Roseiro), augusta.neto@dem.uc.pt
(M.A. Neto), ana.amaro@dem.uc.pt (A.M. Amaro), calcobia@isec.pt (C.J. Alcobia),
maria.paulino@uc.pt (M.F. Paulino).
bration (HAV). These two types of vibration have different sources,
affecting different areas of the body, and produce different symp-
toms. WBVs are transmitted to the human body through the seat or
feet, or both, often, when driving motor vehicles or by standing
over vibrating floors. These kinds of vibrations are of low frequency
and high amplitude, and are in the range 1e80 Hz, specifically
1e20 Hz. HAVs, on the other hand, are limited to hands and arms
and, usually, they result from using power hand tools and from
vehicle control. HAVs are the most studied and they lie in the range
of 6.3e1250 Hz. The vibration effects on the human body are
dependent on the frequency of vibration (Sezgin and Arslan, 2012).
Yang et al. (2015) studied the effect of dual-frequency WBV session
in both vertical jumping and COD (change of direction) ability in
rugby players, and had concluded that the type of frequencies could
improve COD ability as well as vertical jump height in athletes.
Nevertheless, the human response to vibration is dependent on a
number of factors that are difficult to quantify, including the
interaction between the body and point of contact (or coupling),
the posture of the body, the biodynamic properties of the individ-
ual, and environmental considerations (Thrailkill et al., 2013).

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ergon.2016.10.008
0169-8141/© 2016 Published by Elsevier B.V.
 L.M. Roseiro et al. / International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics 56 (2016) 150e160
The effects of WBV on the human body have been widely
investigated. An interesting evidence suggests that exposure to
WBV in the upright position may be a useful intervention to in-
crease bone mineral density, muscle strength and athletic perfor-
mance as well as improve balance (Rehn et al., 2007, 2008; Mani
et al., 2010). Conversely, occupational WBV in the sitting position
has also been linked to low back pain (LBP), altered peripheral
nervous system function, visual and vestibular disturbances, as well
as prostate and gastrointestinal problems (Mani et al., 2010). The
symptoms of exposure to HAV can be classified as vascular,
neurological, or musculoskeletal (Lo
pez-Alonso et al., 2013).
Vascular symptoms can be classified under the heading of “Vibra-
tion White Finger”, a phenomenon characterized by the whitening
of fingers when exposed to low temperatures, while the most
common neurological disorders are numbness and tingling in the
fingers. The musculoskeletal damage associated with hand-arm
vibration manifests, itself, in the form of pain at the upper ex-
tremities, with loss of manual sensitivity and dexterity (Rui et al.,
2008), more recent studies also point to the appearance of Car-
pian tunnel syndrome (House et al., 2009). According to Friden
(2001), the exposure to HAV can cause a variety of vascular and
neuromuscular symptoms, like tingling in digits, discomfort or
inflammation in the wrist and hand, digital lightening, cold intol-
erance, feebleness of the finger flexors or basic muscles and
discoloration and trophic skin lesions of the fingers. However,
Gerhardsson and Hagberg (2014) say that these symptoms depend
on several factors, namely on the intensity and duration of expo-
sure to the vibration, on the type of processes involved and on the
tools used. Although these studies have been used for the purpose
of quantifying the human exposure effects to HAV and to WBV in
work environments, their concepts can also be used to quantify the
human exposure effects to HAV and to WBV in sport conditions.
The level of exposure of the human body to external vibrations
can be calculated either by objective or subjective methods (Lo
pez-
Alonso et al., 2013). Generally, the subjective methods tend to
overestimate the exposure time, whereas objective methods tend
to increase the amount of associated risk. The most common sub-
jective methods include interviews and questionnaires (Bovenzi,
2008; Bovenzi et al., 2002; McCallig et al., 2010). The most com-
mon objective method to surveilling the exposure of humans to
external vibrations is the one-site observation of work processes. In
fact, this method was used in an important study carried out by the
European Agency for Safety and Health at work (EASHT).
Regarding the measurement of vibration transmissibility to the
human body, international standards have been developed over the
years, in order to guide and enable uniform experimental meth-
odologies that can obtain plausible results and encourage follow-up
research in this area. In the literature, the majority of studies for the
assessment of the mechanical vibration effects on the human body
were performed according to the International Standard ISO 2631
(Sezgin and Arslan, 2012; Mechanical vibration, 1997;
Madakashira-Pranesh, 2011), whereas for the assessment of the
mechanical vibration effects on the hand-arm system were per-
formed according to the calculation method outlined in the ISO
5349-1 (Lo
pez-Alonso et al., 2013; Mechanical vibrations, 2001;
Mechanical vibration, 2002; Knez et al., 2013). Because, in the Eu-
ropean Union, one of every four workers claims to be exposed to
vibration for up 2 h of his/her working day, the majority of the
published studies are related with the work in specific heavy in-
dustry, namely agriculture vehicles, industrial trucks, hand-held
tools in construction works and all-terrain vehicles (Sezgin and
Arslan, 2012; Lo
pez-Alonso et al., 2013; Solecki, 2007; Waters
et al., 2008; Rehn et al., 2002). Nevertheless, although the WBV
during training sport has been shown having some beneficial ef-
fects, including improvements in isometric/dynamic leg muscle
151
strength, bone mineral density, back pain, health-related quality of
life and decreased fall risk (Roelants et al., 2004; Abercromby et al.,
2007; Tapp and Signorile, 2014), for extreme sport trainings a
special care must be placed at whole-body and hand-arm vibra-
tions daily limits.
In considering WBV, human response involves five separate
effects: degraded comfort, interference with activities, impaired
health, perception of low-magnitude vibration (as in buildings),
and motion sickness (Griffin, 1990). Specific to the task investigated
in this study, the effect assessed was the health.
The purpose of this study was to quantify the exposure to HAV
and to WBV of a cross motorcycle driver when training in an
endure-cross road and in a stone road. Moreover, an analysis on
road cycling domains with segments of mountain biking, on track
cycling and on the training of athletes in rollers was also conducted.
2. Material and methods
This research study applied the calculation method outlined in
the International Standard (ISO) 5349, for the case of HAV, and in
the ISO 2631, for the WBV (see section 2.2).
The vibration exposure levels of a common 200 cc cross
motorcycle were evaluated based on the data collected from a
motorcycle with a power of 28 kW conducted in endure-cross
training. The tests were performed at two road scenarios: an off
road facility used for endure motorcycle training in Portugal and a
stone road, which is somewhat typical in Portugal. The data were
collected from three tests at each road scenario, with an average
velocity of 40 km/h.
The vibration exposure level from the bicycles were performed
using two different bikes: a road bike with a frame in hard carbon
and a track bike, used in track cycling competition. The road bike
was evaluated at three road scenarios: asphalt; paved, which is
similar to single tracks used in mountain biking, and a stone road
pavement. The track bike was evaluated in a velodrome and in a
training roller. Unlike road bikes, the track bikes have a fixed-gear
and are optimized for racing at a velodrome. Thus, they have only
a single gear and neither have freewheel nor brakes. The tests in the
velodrome have been made by volunteers from the Portuguese
national cycling team and were performed in the accredited by the
UCI (Union Cycliste Internationale) Portuguese velodrome (San-
galhos), which has wooden floors with a 42
curve and a straight
with 12
.
The motorcycle was driven by a sport professional male driver
volunteer with 24 years and 73 kg of mass. The six volunteers
recruited for the bike study have: age 15e18 years; height
170.3 ± 7.6 cm; mass: 59.9 ± 4.7 kg.
2.1. Calculation of vibration exposure
European Directive 2002/44/EC defines the following terms
related with HAV and WBV received by workers. In this study, both
concepts were adapted to drivers (moto and bike):
 Hand-arm vibration: the mechanical vibration that, when is
transmitted to the hand-arm, entails risks to the health and
safety of workers, in particular vascular disorders, osteo-
articular injuries, and neurological or muscular disorders.
 Whole-body vibration: the mechanical vibration that, when is
transmitted to the whole body, entails risks to the health and
safety of workers, in particular lower-back morbidity and
trauma of the spine.
 Daily exposure action value: the vibration exposure value that,
if exceeded, calls for the implementation of a program of tech-
nical and/or organizational measures intended to reduce
152 L.M. Roseiro et al. / International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics 56 (2016) 150e160

Fig. 1. Motorcycle and bike with the accelerometer placed in the seat pad and in the handlebar: (a) motorcycle; (b) road bike; (c) track bike.

exposure to mechanical vibration. For HAV this value is 2.5 m/s2
to an eight hour reference period. In the case of WBV, this value
is of 0.5 m/s2 to an eight hour reference period or, of 9.1 m/s1,7,5
for a vibration dose value.
 Daily exposure limit value: the vibration exposure value that
cannot be exceeded under any circumstances. For HAV this value
is 5 m/s2 to an eight hour reference period, while for WBV, this
value is of 1.15 m/s2 to an eight hour reference period or of 21 m/
s1,7,5 for a vibration dose value.
European directive 2002/44/EC bases the evaluation of exposure
levels to HAV on the ISO Standard 5349 and to WBV on the ISO
Standard 2631. In order to assess the level of exposure, these
standards normalize the daily exposure value to an 8-h reference
period A(8), defined as:
sffiffiffiffiffi
Td
Ai ð8Þ ¼ awi ; ði ¼ 1; 2; 3Þ
T0
for the HAV, and
sffiffiffiffiffi
Td
Ai ð8Þ ¼ ki awi ; ði ¼ 1; 2; 3Þ
T0
in the case of WBV. In Eqns. (1) and (2) the index i is used to indicate
either the x, y or z axes, which are defined according to the ISO
Standard, awi is the weighted root means square acceleration, rms,
specified in meters per second squared in the direction of the three
axes and ki, in Eqn. (2), is a multiplying factor that depends on the
frequency weighting selected and on the evaluation method. Also
in Eqns. (1) and (2), Td is the daily duration of exposure to the vi-
bration awi and T0 is the 8-h reference period (28,800 s). Because
the purpose of this work was to assess the health effects of whole-
body vibration on seated persons, the following values:
k1 ¼ k2 ¼ 1.4 and k3 ¼ 1 were used, in Eqn. (2).
The rms value of the acceleration over a direction i is defined as
the various directions.
For the case of HAV, the ISO 5349 standards specify that the total
magnitude of the vibration should be determined from vibration in
the (x,y,z) orthogonal coordinates, as
 1=2
av ¼ a2w1 þ a2w2 þ a2w3 (4)
On the other hand, for the case of WBV, the ISO 2631 standards
specify that the total magnitude of the vibration should be deter-
mined from vibration in the (x,y,z) orthogonal coordinates, as
 1=2
av ¼ k21 a2w1 þ k22 a2w2 þ k23 a2w3 (5)
where av is the Total Magnitude of the Vibration (TMV) from the
source producing it, which is defined in m/s2, and the other
quantities have already been defined previously. Nevertheless, if a
(1) dominant axis of vibration exists, Eqn. (5) can only be evaluated for
that dominant axis of vibration.
For certain types of vibrations, especially for those containing
occasional shocks, the basic evaluation method may underesti-
mate the effects of vibration. So, in order to verify the suitability of
the weighted rms acceleration method to those types of vibration,
(2)
the ISO Standard uses the crest factor (CF), which is defined as the
modulus of the ratio of the maximum instantaneous peak value of
the frequency-weighted acceleration signal to its rms value. The
ISO Standard states that for vibration with crest factors below or
equal to 9, the weighted rms acceleration method is normally
sufficient. Moreover, the ISO Standard emphases that the

2 31=2
ZT
1
awi ¼4 a2wi ðtÞdt 5 ; i ¼ 1; 2; 3 (3)
T
0

Where T is the duration of the measurement and awi ðtÞ is the

weighted acceleration specified in meters per second squared in
the direction of the corresponding three axes. After measuring the
vibratory surface in contact with the body, the accelerations are
weighted in frequency domain and, for that, the frequency-
weighting curves recommended by the ISO Standard are used on Fig. 2. Coordinate systems used in the HAV (ISO 5349-1, 2001).
 L.M. Roseiro et al. / International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics 56 (2016) 150e160
Fig. 3. Coordinate systems used in the WBV (McCallig et al., 2010).
additional evaluation methods are important to the judgment of
the effect of vibrations on humans.
The relationship between the parameter value A (8) and the
number of years exposure, D, is given by Eqn. (6) and enables a
vibration exposure limit until there is 10% probability of an indi-
vidual developing vibration white finger (also denominated Ray-
naud) disease, in the HAV situation.
D ¼ 31:8  ½Að8Þ1:06
Fig. 4. Data collected from all the three axes (HAV): a) time-histories, b) frequency spectrum.
153
2.2. Vibration and mechanical shock measurements
Vibration and mechanical shock data were collected during a
total of two and half hours of measurements and were obtained in
accordance with the refereed International Organization for Stan-
dardization (ISO 5349; ISO 2631) standards. For all situation two
triaxial accelerometers (ICPR/IEPE Integrated Circuit Piezoelectric)
were used. In the motorcycle, one accelerometer (rubberized) was
placed in the seat pad, see Fig. 1(a), and the other one in the han-
dlebar. In the case of road cycling, the two accelerometers were also
placed in the seat pad, Fig. 1(b), and in the handlebar. For the cases
of track and rollers the two accelerometers were also considered,
one in the seat pad and a second one in the handlebar, Fig. 1(c).
The coordinate system used to acquire HAV data is defined in
Fig. 2, the accelerometer channels were aligned with the motor-
cycle and bicycle, in such a way that x is the anteriore posterior
direction, y is the media e lateral direction, and z is the superi-
oreinferior direction, while acquisitions of the WBV were made
using the coordinate system presented in Fig. 3.
Vibration data were digitally recorded and stored using a data
acquisition system carried by the driver in a backpack. The data
acquisition system includes a NI 9234 four channel simultaneous
sampling IEPE module (National Instruments, Texas, USA) and a
wireless NI WLS-9234 chassis connected to a laptop computer
equipped with LabVIEW® software. The WLS-9234 delivers 102 dB
of dynamic range and incorporates software-selectable AC/DC
coupling and IEPE signal conditioning for accelerometers and mi-
crophones. The four input channels allow digitizing simultaneous
signals at rates up to 51.2 kHz per channel and allow built-in
antialiasing filters that automatically adjust to the sampling rate.
So, in order to analyze a 0.5e80 Hz, ISO 2631 recommended vi-
bration spectrum, the sampling frequency of WBV was set at 80 Hz,
and because for the HAV the frequency range recommended by ISO
5349 is 6.3 Hze1000 Hz, the sampling frequency of HAV was set at
1000 Hz.
The acceleration data were filtered as specified in the standards
using the SVT Human Vibration tool of LabVIEW (LabView, Manual
of NI Sound and Vibration Measurement Suite 6.0, 2007), in which
the filter coefficients are evaluated according to the procedures
developed by Rimell and Mansfield (2007).
3. Results and discussion
The effect of vibration on health is said to be duration-
(6)
dependent and its assessment should be made independently
along each axis (Thrailkill et al., 2013). Fig. 4 shows an example of
154 L.M. Roseiro et al. / International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics 56 (2016) 150e160

the time-history and frequency spectrum of data collected for all
the three axes, in the case of HAV.
Fig. 5 presents the HAV values of awi ðtÞ for the cases of motor-
cycle (Fig. 5(a)) and road bike (Fig. 5(b)), in either cases, the analysis
was made outdoor. This figure shows one of several stratum of
results obtained. The results presented in Table 1 are the sum of all
the stratum evaluated. From the acceleration data, the rms value of
the acceleration over a direction i, awi (i ¼ 1, 2, 3), and the A(8)
parameters were calculated. The daily duration considered for the
motorcycle and bicycle drivers was 2.5 h (9000 s).
The mean and the standard deviation (StDesv) of all evaluated
awi are presented in Table 1. A large dispersion of vibration values
can be seen, among terrains and axes. Nevertheless, on both cases,
the highest vibration is produced in the vertical direction, i.e. along
z axis, and the lowest is in the lateral direction, y axis. Moreover, in
the motorcycle case, the vibration in the fore/aft direction is almost
twice than is in the lateral direction, while in the case of the bike is
more than 3.5 times. The variation of hand-arm vibration values
among axes is due to the paving differences of the terrains
analyzed. In fact, stone roads and endure training terrains are
populated of bumps and valleys that tend to produce the pitch
motion of the motorcycle, leading to higher values of acceleration
in the fore/aft direction. Although the machine's velocity was
controlled by the driver, in order to assure a mean velocity of

Fig. 5. Collected data from all the three axes (HAV): (a) motorcycle, (b) road bike.
 L.M. Roseiro et al. / International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics 56 (2016) 150e160 155

Table 1
awi for the outdoor cases studied in HAV.

Motorcycle Asphalt awi [ms2] Stone Road awi [ms2] Paved awi [ms2] Endure awi [ms2]

Mean (StDesv) awi ¼ 3.82 (0.28) awi ¼ 8.52 (0.14) e awi ¼ 9.77 (0.18)

x axis (StDesv) awix ¼ 2.02 (0.16) awix ¼ 5.47 (0.39) e awix ¼ 6.12 (0.09)
y axis (StDesv) awiy ¼ 1.52 (0.18) awiy ¼ 2.47 (0.12) awiy ¼ 3.18 (0.02)
z axis (StDesv) awiz ¼ 2.84 (0.20) awiz ¼ 6.05 (0.22) awiz ¼ 6.92 (0.17)

Road bike Asphalt awi [ms2] Stone road awi [ms2] Paved awi [ms2] Endure awi [ms2]

Mean (StDesv) awi ¼ 4.07 (0.72) awi ¼ 10.77 (0.71) awi ¼ 17.55 (2.15) e

x axis (StDesv) awix ¼ 2.46 (0.35) awix ¼ 6.14 (1.11) awix ¼ 8.78 (1.38) e
y axis (StDesv) awiy ¼ 1.12 (0.02) awiy ¼ 2.42 (0.13) awiy ¼ 3.49 (0.49)
z axis (St Desv) awiz ¼ 3.02 (0.25) awiz ¼ 8.55 (0.16) awiz ¼ 13.69 (1.68)

40 km/h, the duration of tests was different. So, the relationship velocity, but higher values of acceleration are also found in the
between velocity and vibration can be an important point, which stone and paved terrains. Comparison of results obtained for
can be demonstrated by comparing test durations and vibration motorcycle and bicycle, in the asphalt and stone roads, leads to
values. In the case of bicycle it is more difficult to ensure a constant variations of 6.5% and 26.4%, respectively. The bike shows

Fig. 6. Collected data from all the three axes (HAV): (a) rollers, (b) track bike.
156 L.M. Roseiro et al. / International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics 56 (2016) 150e160

Table 2
awi for the indoor cases studied in HAV.

Indoor bike Track awi [ms2] Rollers awi [ms2]

Mean (StDesv) awi ¼ 2.41 (0.38) awi ¼ 1.29 (0.15)

x axis (StDesv) awix ¼ 1.39 (0.36) awix ¼ 0.73 (0.12)

y axis (StDesv) awiy ¼ 0.82 (0.06) awiy ¼ 0.59 (0.03)
z axis (StDesv) awiz ¼ 2.02 (0.16) awiz ¼ 0.85 (0.14)

higher accelerations on both terrains and the major variation was in

the stone road. These results are in agreement with the
conclusions presented by Gomes and Savionek (2014). These au-
thors studied the cycling activity in different pavements and had
also concluded that the most comfortable pavement type is the
asphalt pavement.
The same analysis can be done for the indoor cases, namely for
the track and roller cases. Fig. 6 shows the awi values obtained for
the HAV acquisition in the cases of roller, Fig. 6(a), and track bike,
Fig. 6(b). In Table 2 the data obtained for awi in the indoor cases,
considering mean and standard deviation (StDesv) values in the
three axis, are presented.
For these cases the dispersion of vibration values is not signifi-
cant, however, the major vibration values are observed for the track
case and, on both cases, the highest vibration produced is in the
vertical direction, along z axis, and the lowest is in the lateral di-
rection (y axis). In the case of track, the vibration produced in the z
direction is almost three times higher than the value in the lateral
Fig. 8. Equivalent 8-h workday acceleration value, A(8), HAV situation, in each axis for
indoor cases.
direction, while in the case of the rollers is only 1.5 times greater.
From the point of view of health, Directive 2002/44/EC quantifies
the HAV exposure and sets limit values for parameter A(8): the
daily exposure limit (DEL) is of 5 m/s2 and the daily exposure action
(DEA) is of 2.5 m/s2. If the measured values are above the exposure
action value, actions should be taken to reduce the vibration values
to below this value. Moreover, the measured values should not
exceed the exposure limit value and, if they are, immediate actions
should be taken to prevent exposure above this limit. Fig. 7 makes
the comparison of the evaluated A(8) parameter in all axis, for the
stone road, Fig. 7(a), and for the asphalt pavement, Fig. 7(b), and the
values of limit (DEL) and action (DEA) exposures. In this figure is
also possible to compare values of parameter A(8) on both vehicles,
while in Fig. 8 the results are displayed only for the bicycle at indoor
training. On both figures, continuous and dashed lines are used to
define the exposure limit and action values according to the
Directive 2002/44/EC, respectively, and the total magnitude of vi-
bration (TMV) is also presented.
Fig. 7 shows that the values of A(8) parameter for the z axis fall
above the daily exposure limit value, which indicates that the driver
may be at health and safety risks. Hence, according to the directive

Fig. 7. Equivalent 8-h workday acceleration value, A(8), HAV situation, in each axis for: Fig. 9. Number of years needed for a 10% possibility of white finger diseases:
(a) stone road; (b) asphalt. parameter D for HAV exposure.
 L.M. Roseiro et al. / International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics 56 (2016) 150e160 157

Fig. 10. WBV collected data from all the three axes: (a) motorcycle, (b) road bike.

2002/44/EC, an immediate action should be taken in order to
reduce the induced vibration on driver. In the cases of Figs. 7(b) and
8 there are no problems with the values of exposure parameter
A(8), but the values of TMV in Fig. 7(b) are a little above of the limit
value of daily exposure action. From Fig. 7 it is also possible to
conclude that, in terms of HAV, the bicycle is more harmful to
humans than the motorcycle.
Using Eqn. (6) it is possible to estimate the number of exposure
years needed until the risk of white finger diseases reaches a
probability of 10%. The results are presented in Fig. 9.
Fig. 9 shows that the worst pavement scenario is associated with
the circulation of bicycle in the paved road, where D has a value of 2
years and 2 months. The endure road showed to be the most
disadvantageous scenario for the motorcycle driver, with a D value
of 4 years.
The data of WBV acquisitions in the outdoor cases are presented
in Fig. 10 and collected in Table 3, while for indoor cases are shown
in Fig. 11 and Table 4.
Once more, in all cases, was observed a great dispersion of
values among axes and terrains, but the values obtained to the
bicycle are bigger, at almost twice, than those that were obtained to
motorcycle. In order to understand if there is a connection between
the test duration, i.e. test velocity, and the vibration values, addi-
tional tests were performed in an asphalt road with the motorcycle
158 L.M. Roseiro et al. / International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics 56 (2016) 150e160

Table 3
awi WBV for the outdoor cases studied.

Motorcycle Asphalt awi [ms2] Stone Road awi [ms2] Paved awi [ms2] Endure awi [ms2]

Mean (StDesv) awi ¼ 1.67 (0.09) awi ¼ 2.85 (0.16) e awi ¼ 5.66 (0.16)

x axis (StDesv) awix ¼ 0.36 (0.04) awix ¼ 0.63 (0.03) e awix ¼ 2.56 (0.04)
y axis (StDesv) awiy ¼ 0.30 (0.09) awiy ¼ 0.38 (0.06) awiy ¼ 1.31 (0.02)
z axis (StDesv) awiz ¼ 1.67 (0.09) awiz ¼ 2.85 (0.16) awiz ¼ 5.66 (0.16)

Road bike Asphalt awi [ms2] Stone Road awi [ms2] Paved awi [ms2] Endure awi [ms2]

Mean (StDesv) awi ¼ 2.76 (0.41) awi ¼ 5.59 (0.98) awi ¼ 6.37 (1.04) e

x axis (StDesv) awix ¼ 0.94 (0.09) awix ¼ 1.46 (0.35) awix ¼ 1.29 (0.15) e
y axis (StDesv) awiy ¼ 1.01 (0.18) awiy ¼ 1.29 (0.21) awiy ¼ 1.06 (0.05)
z axis (St Desv) awiz ¼ 2.76 (0.41) awiz ¼ 5.59 (0.98) awiz ¼ 6.37 (1.04)

shows the same information, but for the indoor cases.

In Fig. 12 the values of parameter A(8) computed for the z axis
and for the total magnitude of vibration fall above the daily expo-
sure limit value, indicating that the driver may be at health and
safety risks and, therefore, according to directive 2002/44/EC an
immediate action or study should be taken to reduce the vibration
driver. The kind of action that can be made, without great effort,
consists in to take in account the information that is presented in
Figs. 7(a) and 12. With this information is possible to estimate the
exposure time that can be safely used, i.e the driving time for which
the level of exposition to vibration is smaller than the daily

Fig. 11. Variation of aw values with the velocity of tests in WBV and an asphalt road.

running at velocities of 40, 60 and 80 km/h. Fig. 11 shows the awi

values for the several velocities and, herein, is possible to conclude
that is an evident relationship, i.e. shorter durations correlate to
higher vibration values. This conclusion is in agreement with the
literature.
The same analysis was done in the indoor situation. The results
assessed are presented in Table 4 and it is possible to observe that
the larger values are obtained in the track cycling in the z axis, in
line with the other results presented in this paper.
From the point of view of health, Directive 2002/44/EC sets a
daily exposure limit value for parameter A(8) of 1.15 ms2 and a
daily exposure action value of 0.5 ms2, if the measured values fall
above the exposure action value, action should be taken to reduce
the vibration values to below this level. As referred before the
measured values should not exceed the exposure limit value and, if
they are, immediate action should be taken to prevent exposure
above this limit.
Fig. 12 shows the parameter A(8) on each axis in the stone and
asphalt roads for both motorcycle and bike cases. Once more,
continuous and dashed lines are used to define the exposure limit
and action values according to the Directive 2002/44/EC. Fig. 13

Table 4
awi for the indoor cases studied in WBV.

Indoor bike Track awi [ms2] Rollers awi [ms2]

Mean (StDesv) awi ¼ 1.94 (0.35) awi ¼ 1.22 (0.23)

x axis (StDesv) awix ¼ 0.33 (0.05) awix ¼ 0.38 (0.05)

y axis (StDesv) awiy ¼ 1.01 (0.18) awiy ¼ 0.70 (0.13)
Fig. 12. Equivalent 8-h workday acceleration value, A(8), in case of WBV, in each axis
z axis (StDesv) awiz ¼ 1.54 (0.02) awiz ¼ 0.79 (0.14)
for: (a) stone road; (b) asphalt.
 L.M. Roseiro et al. / International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics 56 (2016) 150e160
Fig. 13. Equivalent 8-h workday acceleration value, A(8), WBV situation, in each axis
for indoor cases.
exposure action value. For instance, the exposure time that can be
safely used to drive a motorcycle in a stone road is about 0.25 h. In
the indoor cases, as in the case of HAV exposure, the athlete is not
subject to any risk related to the vibration effect.
4. Conclusions
In this paper, an exposure analysis of both hand-arm and
whole-body vibrations from motorcycle and bicycle was made in
different terrains. With regard to the exposure of human hand-
arm system, in all outdoor situations, it is possible concluding
that athletes were exposed to levels of effective acceleration that
are higher than the action value recommended by the European
Directive 2002/44/EC. No problems were detected in the indoor
cases. For the motorcycle the worst scenario was the circulation in
the endure terrain, while for the bicycle was the circulation in the
paved terrain. In the HAV the most affected joint are shoulder,
forearm and arm, since these joint resonance occurs at fre-
quencies between 4 and 30 Hz, i.e. lower frequencies. Concerning
the WBV exposure, for the bicycle, the daily level of effective ac-
celeration exposure, exceeded the limit of the daily exposure ac-
tion value on all types of outside pavements. This value was
largely surpassed when quantizing the effect of exposure to stone
and paved roads, being the paved road the worst situation. The
driving of motorcycle in enduring or stone roads led also to daily
exposure levels of effective acceleration that exceeded the limit of
the daily exposure action value. So, it is possible to conclude that
there will be some adverse effects resulting from prolonged
exposure to these conditions, like the carpal tunnel syndrome,
lumbosciatalgia, disc herniations, neck pain, tingling of hands and
pallor and osteoarticular injuries, especially in the shoulder joints,
elbows, wrists and knees.
The severity of HAV exposure depends essentially on the type of
terrain and of some adjustments of tyre pressures, suspension type,
frame material, and so on, whereas the WBV exposure depends on
the athlete's comfort when he is sitting. So, a correct positioning on
the saddle can minimize the occurrence of future harm in the
health of practitioners.
Acknowledgement
This research is sponsored by the project UID/EMS/00285/2013.
159
The authors acknowledge the support of Velo
drome of Sangalhos,
in particular Prof. Gabriel and the students Tiago Almeida and
Valter Ferreira, for having collaborated in this work.
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