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Ford Motor Company’s third-age suit helps designers understand how hard a simple operation like buckling a seat belt can be for an elderly customer.
Welcome to the baby boomer generation. Boomers have influenced the way of the world for more than 50 years, and auto manufacturers such as Ford have been focused on serving this customer demographic.
The average American household purchases 13 cars over a lifetime — and seven of those are purchased after the head of the household turns 50, according to a survey conducted by AutoPacific. According to the Center for Aging Services Technologies (CAST), someone turns 50 every seven seconds in the United States. By 2030, the number of people over the age of 50 will surpass those under 20, says CAST.
With the baby boomer demographic aging, Ford’s ergonomics team is developing new product designs with key considerations in mind, including ease of use, safety and comfort.
Ergonomics is the scientific discipline concerned with the understanding of interactions among humans and other elements. Also known as human factors, ergonomics has been around hundreds of years. Take, for example, humans’ early use of stones and pebbles as tools, or scoops made from antelope bones with handles that were shaped for the hand. This is evidence of humans’ selection of tools that would make certain tasks easier to accomplish.
Ergonomics is applied much in the same way to automobile design. It’s about modifying vehicle equipment to make it as usable and intuitive as possible.
Eero Laansoo, a Ford ergonomics engineer, is part of the team responsible for making every control in the vehicle functional.
"Our goal is that when a customer gets into a Ford vehicle for the first time, they can operate all of the features comfortably, without needing to refer to the owner’s manual," Laansoo says. "It’s about making controls — everything from adjustable pedals to setting clocks — as intuitive and easy to use as possible."
Safety also plays a critical role in ergonomics and has gained importance with customer desire for more technology features in vehicles. For example, the ergonomics team conducted two years of usability testing before a new navigation system was added to the 2006 Ford Explorer. This included pen and paper testing — showing potential customers screen shots of how the control would operate — as well as building prototypes to determine the best way to make the system safe and easy to use.
"With an increased desire for in-vehicle technologies, every day we’re balancing ease of use and comfort with driver distraction avoidance," says Laansoo.
Designing to "suit" boomers
Ford is the only automotive manufacturer leveraging a "third-age suit" to give younger engineers and designers a feel for the needs of the elderly. The suit, which looks like a bee catcher’s outfit, is made of materials that add bulk and restrict movement at key areas of the body (e.g., knees, elbows, back and neck). The suit also uses gloves that reduce the sense of touch, and goggles that simulate cataracts. The suit doesn’t necessarily simulate a specific condition, such as arthritis, but it does simulate a worst-case customer scenario — for example, where someone can’t comfortably bend his elbow to grasp the door handle and can’t easily look over his shoulder when changing lanes.
"This is a key training and awareness tool for us," says Laansoo. "Through the suit, our engineers can understand what it’s like to be in the shoes of this demographic. Our design decisions, therefore, become much more in-line with customer needs."
The suit has also caught the attention of aircraft manufacturers. As part of its alliance with Boeing, Ford and Boeing engineers are researching ways to provide more user-friendly interiors for automobiles and airplanes.
Another suit, the "empathy belly," helps engineers understand the needs and potential restrictions of pregnant women. This garment includes a strap that engineers put on their chest (simulating shortness of breath) and a water belly/lead weights (which put pressure on the belly and give the wearer the outward appearance of being pregnant). Once on, the engineer starts to feel several pregnancy symptoms and, in a matter of a few minutes, he or she is 33 pounds heavier and nine months pregnant.
Both these suits are key components of Ford’s design and ergonomics processes, with the goal of creating vehicles that provide ease of use for any type of customer.
"I know I’ve done my job when no one notices the work and details that I’ve put into a car," says Laansoo. "Good ergonomics is transparent to the customer. Customers simply see a product that is easy, comfortable and fun to use."
Welcome to the baby boomer generation. Boomers have influenced the way of the world for more than 50 years, and auto manufacturers such as Ford have been focused on serving this customer demographic.
The average American household purchases 13 cars over a lifetime — and seven of those are purchased after the head of the household turns 50, according to a survey conducted by AutoPacific. According to the Center for Aging Services Technologies (CAST), someone turns 50 every seven seconds in the United States. By 2030, the number of people over the age of 50 will surpass those under 20, says CAST.
With the baby boomer demographic aging, Ford’s ergonomics team is developing new product designs with key considerations in mind, including ease of use, safety and comfort.
Ergonomics is the scientific discipline concerned with the understanding of interactions among humans and other elements. Also known as human factors, ergonomics has been around hundreds of years. Take, for example, humans’ early use of stones and pebbles as tools, or scoops made from antelope bones with handles that were shaped for the hand. This is evidence of humans’ selection of tools that would make certain tasks easier to accomplish.
Ergonomics is applied much in the same way to automobile design. It’s about modifying vehicle equipment to make it as usable and intuitive as possible.
Eero Laansoo, a Ford ergonomics engineer, is part of the team responsible for making every control in the vehicle functional.
"Our goal is that when a customer gets into a Ford vehicle for the first time, they can operate all of the features comfortably, without needing to refer to the owner’s manual," Laansoo says. "It’s about making controls — everything from adjustable pedals to setting clocks — as intuitive and easy to use as possible."
Safety also plays a critical role in ergonomics and has gained importance with customer desire for more technology features in vehicles. For example, the ergonomics team conducted two years of usability testing before a new navigation system was added to the 2006 Ford Explorer. This included pen and paper testing — showing potential customers screen shots of how the control would operate — as well as building prototypes to determine the best way to make the system safe and easy to use.
"With an increased desire for in-vehicle technologies, every day we’re balancing ease of use and comfort with driver distraction avoidance," says Laansoo.
Designing to "suit" boomers
Ford is the only automotive manufacturer leveraging a "third-age suit" to give younger engineers and designers a feel for the needs of the elderly. The suit, which looks like a bee catcher’s outfit, is made of materials that add bulk and restrict movement at key areas of the body (e.g., knees, elbows, back and neck). The suit also uses gloves that reduce the sense of touch, and goggles that simulate cataracts. The suit doesn’t necessarily simulate a specific condition, such as arthritis, but it does simulate a worst-case customer scenario — for example, where someone can’t comfortably bend his elbow to grasp the door handle and can’t easily look over his shoulder when changing lanes.
"This is a key training and awareness tool for us," says Laansoo. "Through the suit, our engineers can understand what it’s like to be in the shoes of this demographic. Our design decisions, therefore, become much more in-line with customer needs."
The suit has also caught the attention of aircraft manufacturers. As part of its alliance with Boeing, Ford and Boeing engineers are researching ways to provide more user-friendly interiors for automobiles and airplanes.
Another suit, the "empathy belly," helps engineers understand the needs and potential restrictions of pregnant women. This garment includes a strap that engineers put on their chest (simulating shortness of breath) and a water belly/lead weights (which put pressure on the belly and give the wearer the outward appearance of being pregnant). Once on, the engineer starts to feel several pregnancy symptoms and, in a matter of a few minutes, he or she is 33 pounds heavier and nine months pregnant.
Both these suits are key components of Ford’s design and ergonomics processes, with the goal of creating vehicles that provide ease of use for any type of customer.
"I know I’ve done my job when no one notices the work and details that I’ve put into a car," says Laansoo. "Good ergonomics is transparent to the customer. Customers simply see a product that is easy, comfortable and fun to use."
