Laser Scanning for Safe Equipment Design That Increases Operator Visibility by Measuring Blind Spots

One-fourth of construction industry fatalities are caused by worker collisions with construction equipment. Nonvisible areas (blind spots) for equipment operators are contributing factors to many of these fatalities because equipment operators are unable to see ground personnel at certain locations around their equipment. Presented are the design and validation of a unique technique for measuring blind spots by using laser scanning data. The work demonstrates how the design of construction equipment impacts the visibility of its operator. The contribution of the developed technique to the body of knowledge is that it can precisely evaluate and compare different equipment models and design characteristics. The blind spot measurement data for several similar pieces of equipment provides design suggestions that increase operator visibility. By increasing operator visibility through advanced equipment design, safety can be promoted on construction sites and in any other work environment, particularly with nearby ground workforce equipment. (C) 2013 American Society of Civil Engineers.