Analysis of Whole Body Vibration of a Two-Wheeler Rider 2019-01-0406

Two-wheel motorcycles are preferred in many countries as they have some merits such as cheaper, easy to handle and give higher fuel economy compared to three and four-wheel vehicles. Majority of the population in India falls under low and middle-income groups. Two-wheelers cater to the needs of low and middle-income users, and fill the gaps when public transport systems are inefficient or not available. Most of the people in India use motorcycles for transportation. However, due to different road conditions, motorcycle rider experiences different health effects within a few years of their vehicle travel. This paper investigates the effect of vibration on a man commuter’s health. For this purpose, a mathematical model of a male rider’s body was considered, and a numerical analysis was carried out to assess the effect of vibration acting on the commuter during a two-wheeler ride under various road conditions for a chosen suspension system and presented in this paper. Road conditions were chosen based on the different surface roughness values. The most affected rider’s body part due to the vibration of the two-wheeler was determined from the results. The results presented in this paper can be useful in understanding the vibrations induced in the human body while riding a two-wheeler at a particular velocity on a specific road surface.