ERGONOMIC ANALYSIS OF AN AFFORDANCE TOOL FOR MODERN KITCHEN KNIVES

Abstract

The focus of this study was on how different knife characteristics affect the consumer’s ability to slice vegetables. There are many variables to a knife and there are beliefs about what makes a better knife. There are two common multipurpose knives used for slicing vegetables: the chef knife and the santoku knife. For this study, an affordance tool was designed, manufactured and tested. This tool was designed to be placed on the knife to create an affordance for users to hold the knife in a pinch grip. This grip aligns the wrist and forearm and decreases fatigue and increases stability and control while cutting. The tool was tested with 16 participants to ensure it did not require more muscle activation, time, discomfort, or cause lower slice performance. Ultimately, the designed affordance tool provided an affordance without negatively effecting a cutting task compared to using a knife without the affordance tool.