Computer analysis is capable of solving an expanding range of biomedical problems including workplace ergonomics, vehicle occupant protection, and functional electrical stimulation of muscle for motility augmentation in paraplegics. However, the prodigious task of writing the equations of motion has necessitated problem specific simplifying assumptions that restrict the general applicability of efforts to date. Progress is slow because new problems require new programs, perpetuating the inability to build on past efforts. This project's long-term goal is to provide an interactive modeling system for analyzing not only humans, but also the mechanisms and environments with which they dynamically interact. Phase I created an interactive hominoid modeler that accesses a data base for human body parameters and combined with files that model other systems and submitted for kinematic, static, dynamic, or modal frequency analysis by the general mechanisms program (produced and supported by Mechanical Dynamics, Inc.). The Phase II project will integrate the process into a single program, while expanding general modeling capabilities and repackaging others for more convenient use in the targeted industries of transportation, space, and medicine.
