Structural Analysis of Spinal Column to Estimate Intervertebral Disk Load for a Mobile Posture Improvement Support System

摘要

In this study a support system to prevent by himself/herself before suffering from lumbago is developed. The load on the intervertebral disk is indirectly estimated using the measured shape of the lumbar part for that. In this paper, assuming that the lumbar vertebrae is a beam, the weight of the upper body and the rotation angle of the pelvis are considered as factors affecting its shape when the body bends forward. So structural analysis is performed. As a result, it was found that the upper moment of the spinal column has an effect of inducing a bad posture, the lower moment has an effect of maintaining the curvature of the spinal column to keep a good posture.