Page 353 - Anthropometry, Apparel Sizing and Design

346 Anthropometry, Apparel Sizing and Design

“170/84…” (China), etc. These charts use the traditional body measurements such as
height, bust and waist girth, and weight (Numbers.com, n.d.; SIXECHARTER, n.d.).
This approach of labeling doesn’t include some crucial measurements reflecting the
bodies’ morphology, which are important to compression garments. Many online
stores sell pressure garments with sizes labeled as XS, S, …, XXL and detail the basic
body measurements (girth of bust, waist, hip, height, weight, and thigh) in an
additional table.
This simple method of garment size identifications cannot explain the garment’s
features or help a consumer to compare the garment with their own body measure-
ments. So, consumers usually have to choose a pressure garment based only on their
own experience or try it on. However, many pressure garments cannot be tried on in
offline/online stores before purchasing, to control the fit and the comfort; it is impos-
sible to determine whether or not to accept the pressure of garments, because some
pressure garments are designed for suitable short-time wearing. The consumers with
distinctive physiological characteristics and different body measurements in particu-
lar should use size charts (Mpampa et al., 2010; Song and Ashdown, 2011). The con-
sumer needs more information about specific features and construction of pressure
garments to be confident about their wearing comfort.
To create a pattern block of pressure garments, the patternmaker needs additional
information that allows the customer satisfaction to be increased, to produce close-fitting
and comfortable garments. Instead of using only the sizes of ready-to-wear garments,
such as the bust, waist or hip girth, to calculate the structural values, the compression
garments need more detailed and accurate data about human body characteristics. More
detailed measurements should be added to describe human morphology.
New body measurements can be obtained by means of body scanning technologies
such as the Vitus Smart XXL 3D body scanner with the software Anthroscan for visu-
alization, processing, and evaluation of 3D scan data (Zhe and Kuzmichev, 2016a; Fan
et al., 2004; Percoco, 2011; Zhang, 2004; Zhang and Zou, 2003). New research
explains how to create the sizing system for male shaping underwear by increasing
the number of body measurements. Fig. 13.7 shows all primary and additional body
measurements belonging to the lower torso and which can be taken from the bodies
scanned. Fig.13.7A shows 14 primary measurements of the lower torso, and
Fig. 13.7A (upper) shows the schemes of measuring of the curve and lengths located
on the body; Fig. 13.7A (lower) shows the horizontal and vertical distances out of the
body. As Fig. 13.7B shows, in order to describe some crucial characteristics of male
bodies, 18 additional data points marked as abbreviations should been calculated after
data processing.
There are six key measurements that can be used directly for pattern block making,
classification of male lower torso, and labeling of underwear:
(1) the additional girth measuring below natural waist and used for a waistband location NW G ,
(2) the distance h W between two levels—natural waist girth W G and waistband girth NW G ,
(3) the vertical distance between the point of genital peak and the crotch level h G ,
(4) the horizontal distance in profile view between natural waist front and genital bulge ΔGW,
(5) the horizontal distance between hip peak and natural waist back ΔWH,
(6) thigh girth NT G as underwear bottom.