Unlocking the secret to a perfect fit (hktdc.com)


	Roger Ball and his PolyU team found out why one size doesn't fit all

Groundbreaking Hong Kong research has shed light on a mystery that has till now eluded manufacturers worldwide: why one mould of "headwear" products – such as sunglasses and safety helmets – cannot fit both Chinese and western users.

The answer, academics at Hong Kong Polytechnic University's (PolyU) School of Design have found, is that their head shapes are different. It's been revealed that the head of an average Chinese is higher and smaller than that of a westerner, and the upper rear section is flatter.

The findings result from an 18-month study kicked off in April 2006 with nearly HK$4.5 million (US$580,000) in government funding under the Innovation and Technology Commission's DesignSmart Initiative. Industry partners including UGS PLM Solutions and Strategic Sports also supported the project, titled SizeChina.com.

World first

It is believed PolyU's work is the world's first comprehensive databank of Chinese head sizes and facial features. Roger Ball, Director of SizeChina.com and Assistant Director, School of Design, explained the significance of the data.

"Industrial designers around the world have been longing for such ergonomic data because many existing consumer products are designed for Caucasians, and as a result they do not fit Chinese people properly," he said.

"Understanding human size and shape is the cornerstone for designing successful consumer products because every product relies on accurate fitting. Designers, engineers and architects need sophisticated digital data on head and face shapes to design the next generation of best-selling products. How well a product fits us is the most important part of any successful design."

In compiling anthropometric data, Mr Ball and his team visited six mainland cities including Guangzhou, Hangzhou, Chongqing, Beijing and Shenyang. Working in collaboration with local universities and enterprises, they collected the head forms of more than 2,000 volunteers aged 18 – 70, using a 360-degree rotary non-contact head and face scanner.

Industry application

After analysing the data, PolyU researches came up with five standard head forms for ethnic Chinese. Mr Ball said these would be extremely useful for industrial designers in creating the next generation of perfect-fitting products for Chinese consumers.

Designers from a range of various industries could also find value in the data. These include medical (facemasks, head-mounted micro-surgery tools etc); sports (bicycle helmets, protective goggles); and entertainment/communications (headphones and virtual reality headsets). It will be of special importance for the optical industry. According to a previous study by PolyU School of Optometry, more than 70 per cent of ethnic Chinese school children wear spectacles.

Mr Ball said the findings explain why a baseball cap sits awkwardly on Chinese heads, and why Chinese have trouble wearing western sunglasses. Armed with this new data, the potential consumer market can be enormous.