Finite-element simulation of the pressure and displacement of functional waist protectors varying with wearing time

Compression garments exert an inward displacement perpendicular to the body surface on the human body, which is an important indicator for evaluating the pressure comfort and for optimizing the design of clothing structures. Delving into the relationship between clothing pressure and body surface displacement is of certain reference significance for the optimized design of functional pressure clothing. This paper takes the waist protector as the research object, in view of the unreasonable pressure distribution phenomenon existing in most current waist protector products, such as discomfort caused by excessive pressure or easy slipping due to insufficient pressure, and weakened protective function. Based on computed tomography (CT) scans of the waist, we constructed a three-dimensional model of the human waist. Considering that the pressure and displacement generated by a waist protector on the human body will vary with the wearing time, this study divides the wearing process of waist protector into four time periods (0, 1, 2, and 3 h). Using the Abaqus finite-element software, the cross-sectional deformation of the waist during the wearing of the waist protector by the human body was simulated, and the pressure and displacement distribution and changing trend of the waist during the wearing process of the waist protector were obtained. In order to further study the compression deformation of the human waist caused by the waist protector, this study divided the cross-section of the human waist into regions, and calculated the volume reduction of each region based on the finite-element simulation results. By analyzing the influence of the design of the waist protector structure, pressure distribution, and body surface displacement changes on the wearing comfort of the human body, this study provides a theoretical basis for the optimization of the design of waist protector products.