Three experiments to support the design of lightweight comfortable vehicle seats P. Vink a , M. Franz b , I. Kamp a,b and R. Zenk b a Faculty of Industrial Design Engineering, Delft University of Technology, Landbergstraat 15, 2628 CE Delft, The Netherlands b BMW AG, Knorrstrasse 147, D-80788 München, Germany Abstract. Seats need to be more lightweight for airplanes, cars, busses and even trains to contribute to a better environment and to reduce energy consumption. However, a reduction in comfort due to weight reduction is not preferable, which opens a new area of research: improving comfort with a minimum of material or with lightweight materials and systems. In this paper three experiments are performed to test the effects of light weight seats and parts of a seat on comfort. The first experiment shows that a new developed light weight massage system improves comfort and reduces muscle activity. The second experi- ment shows that the automatic seat adjustment without motors improves the comfort as well. The third experiment showed that a light weight seat following closely the human body contour is experienced on many aspects in the same way as current more heavy seats. More research and models will be needed in this ergonomic field which needs more attention. Keywords: seat, comfort, sustainability, light weight, end user experience 1. Introduction High fuel prizes demand for lighter vehicles. Another reason to develop vehicles with less and lighter materials is to achieve a more responsible image and meet the regulations. Seats contribute to the weight of airplanes, cars, busses and even trains and lighter materials or new designs are preferred for seats as well [4]. Of course the safety demands should still be met, but additionally, vehicle seat users demand at least the comfort they are used to according to Vink & Hallbeck [6]. This could be contradictory as the cur- rent seats could be made more comfortable by adding weight. It is more problematic to improve comfort and reduce weight at the same time. Therefore, in the development programs of the Delft University of Technology and BMW where “sustainable well- being” is part of the vision, innovative seat concepts are developed that reduce weight. However, the ques- tion is whether these new concepts are appreciated by end users. In this paper three concepts that are focused on lightweight and comfort level will be evaluated. End Fig. 1. The inflatable bladders in the seat used in experiment 1. Work 41 (2012) 1466-1470 DOI: 10.3233/WOR-2012-0339-1466 IOS Press 1466 1051-9815/12/$27.50 © 2012 – IOS Press and the authors. All rights reserved