HAL — Hand Activity Level

Overview

Hand Activity Level is a validated ergonomic measure used in co njunction with Normalised Peak Hand Force to assess the risk of upper limb musculoskeletal disorders in tasks involving repetitive hand and wrist activity. HAL is rated on a scale of zero to ten based on the frequency of exertions and the duty cycle of han d activity — with anchor descriptions at key points on the scale ranging from slow, infrequent hand motions to rapid, continuous hand activity with little or no recovery. HAL forms one of the two axes of the ACGIH TLV for Hand Activity assessment — and is also used independently as a rapid indicator of upper limb repetitive strain risk in task screening.