Anthropometric Measurements and Adaptation of Garment Size Systems

Title:                   Anthropometric Measurements and
Adaptation of Garment Size Systems
Project funding:   Croatian Ministry of Science, Education and Sports
Code:                  117-1171879-1887
Project Leader:     Prof. Darko Ujević, Ph. D.

Project Summary:

Systematic anthropometric surveys have been conducted since 1901 with the aim of developing and improving systems for clothing and footwear sizes. The measurement results show how a national population changes over a period of several decades in physical build and size due to a series of factors (food habits, population migrations, climatic conditions etc.). Based on the results of anthropometric measurements in the Republic of Croatia (2004/05) on the sample of 30,866 test persons aged between 1 to 82 a statistical analysis of body measurements was performed, a database including 5 basic studies of sex and age as well as a basic projection of a new standard for clothing and footwear was built. These results enable a significant and stimulating continuation of scientific research and a comparison to other national standards and their contributions to the creation of systems for clothing and footwear sizes. Elements common for national standards of garment sizing by an exact approach will be investigated and analyzed, in particular because the presumptions of national systems and starting elements respectively are not universally founded like intersize intervals which differ in sizes since the conformity of individual starting places is missing. Data will be provided for a common base with methods of body measuring and size designation of clothes according to the recommendations of the Technical Committee TC133 within ISO and EN standards as well as the design and development of a computer system (DOV-KO) for unifying all body measurements and basic garment construction. Within the scope of this project and based on experience, a very important cycle of anthropometric measurements of the sporting population in football, water polo, rowing, basketball and handball will be performed. 4,000 test persons from Zagreb, Osijek, Rijeka, Split and Dubrovnik will be measured, whereby specific body differences and deformations of muscles caused by longstanding training will be analyzed. A comparative analysis of the representative sample of the anthropometric measurements of sportsmen and other population as well as the investigation of other trends of body measurements will be performed. This will enable an exceptional insight into the anthropometric dimensions which reflect body shape, composition and elements of success in sports respectively. Stadiometar or a new measuring instrument for continuous measuring body height, foot length and width will be designed too.

Fig.1: Anthropometer (One-arm and/or two-arm anthropometer)