Maximum Grasping Reach of Operators Possessing Functional Impairments of the Upper Extremities

摘要

This study documents the difference between the maximum grasping reach of non-disabled people and disabled people who have functional impairments of the upper extremities. A methodology for measuring and analyzing the grasping reach distance within eight vertical and thirteen horizontal planes is presented. Graphs are used to illustrate the differences between the fifth percentile data of both groups. Statistically significant differences were obtained between the non-disabled and disabled groups at the 5% level. Each disabled subject was categorized into one of four subgroups according to the extent his disability impaired performance of the assigned grasping reach task. The non-disabled group was compared to the subgroups to observe the extent to which the degree of impairment affected the reach capability of each group. (Author)