This paper presents a study of a virtual manufacturing process used by a Swedish car producer to verify the assembly of a new car model. The focus of the study was to evaluate the ergonomics of assembly tasks using computer manikins. To further study the limitations and difficulties in using and interpreting data from computer manikins, the use of the field of view module was evaluated. Results show that the computer manikin is a viable tool in verifying ergonomics and allows the detection of many problems prior to physical pre-series. The results also demonstrate that computer manikin's users and others involved in the virtual manufacturing process are very important for the final results, not only the tools used. The study identified several factors that influence the result of computer manikin simulations: users' education and knowledge, communication within teams and documentation.
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