A Study on Anthropometric Characteristics of Human Body in Vertical Jump : Effect of Weight Addition on Jump Motion

The aim of this study is to investigate the relationship between the anthropometric characteristics of human body and the optimal vertical jump motion. The vertical jump motions were analyzed under various conditions, in which additional weights were attached to the subject at the shoulder, waist, or ankle. The computer simulations of the vertical jump were carried out based on the musculoskeletal model by varying the parameters of body segments of the musculoskeletal model. It was concluded that the jump height was affected by the body segment parameters such as the weight, the moment of inertia, and the center of gravity of each segment. It was also suggested that the relations between the power of mono-joint muscles and the segment weights should be optimal so that the two-joint muscles could transfer the energy to the distal segments and they could control the power of the mono-joint muscles in order to maximize the jump height.