ERGONOMIC EVALUATION OF THE OPERATOR’S WORKPLACE OF TWO COMBINE HARVESTERS

Abstract

Ergonomic conditions related to the operator’s workplace have been decisive for the development of new agricultural machinery projects, providing adequate conditions for operators and efficiency during the performance of operations. In this sense, this work aimed to evaluate the ergonomic characteristics of the operator's workplace of two combine harvesters, related to the access zones and the operation commands. Two combine harvesters, named A and B, belonging to Class IV, were studied, and the positioning of the main operating commands related to the Seat Index Point, classified in access zones, according to the ISO 15077 standard, was evaluated. The results indicate that, 70.67% and 56.75% of the frequently activated controls are located in the comfort and access zones in the vertical longitudinal plane, with 100% and 71.43% of the commands related to the upper horizontal plane in these areas, for harvesters A and B, respectively. Therefore, there was a considerable variation in the arrangement of the drive controls, for the vertical longitudinal and horizontal upper planes, for both models of harvesters studied.