Fawcett Exovest User Manual (Draft)

7/29/2019 Fawcett Exovest User Manual (Draft)

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FAWCETT EXOVEST USER MANUAL

Draft Fawcett Exovest User Manual September 2012

Shoulder Latch

Rod-Length

Adjustments

Waist Latch

Over-Centre

Lever

Velcro Shoulder Straps

Velcro Waist Straps

Bridge Plate

Rapid-Release

Ring

Socket Block


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The Fawcett Exovest is a semi-rigid exoskeletal structure that is designed to place

forces into specific areas of your body, without interfering with natural movement.

As such, it needs to be fitted correctly and precisely. Please follow the directions

below meticulously, and be prepared to experiment with different settings until the

Exovest conforms to the size and shape of your body. Once these adjustments are

finalized, you can enter and exit the vest quickly by means of two latches and one

over-centre lever.

1/ Preparation. Loosen the velcro straps around the waist and shoulders, then

roughly set the rod lengths, front and rear, by eye to the length of your torso.

Open both the shoulder and the waist latch, and the over-centre lever on the

waistband, then put on the vest. Fasten first the waist latch, then the shoulder

latch, and finally, the over-centre lever at the waist.

2/ Adjusting for Length. Place your thumbs inside the waistband, and pull the vest

down onto your shoulders. The centre-line of the waistband should be level with

the top of the pelvic bone (the ilia), as illustrated below.

The shoulder straps should just touch your shoulders. If the vest is too long or too

short, adjust the rod lengths to suit. Unless you have assistance, youll need to

remove the vest to adjust the rear rod length.

Correct Waistband Height



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3/ Engaging the Waist Pads. With the over-centre lever closed, tighten the waist

straps until both sets of waistband pads contact your body firmly. You should feel

the front waist pads contact the pelvic bones (ilia) at front and rear.

Front Pad Position

If you are wide at the hips, the front pads may press into your abdomen without

contacting the pelvic bones to the sides. If so, remove the vest, and move the

pads outboard to left and right until they will contact the pelvic bones.

The rear pads should not touch the base of the spine (sacrum). If they do, similarly

move the pads outboard until they also rest on the ilia.

Rear Pad Position

The waistband pads should be adjusted to leave clearance between the front

and rear pads, but not so much clearance that the hard plastic waistband

contacts the body. In either of these circumstances, move the pads to fit.


Sacrum

Ilia


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FrontRear Waist Pad Gap

The supplied booster pads may be placed between the waist pads and the

waistband for better fit and/or comfort.

4/ Seating the Shoulder Pads. Tighten the shoulder straps to bring the rods to a

distance in front of your chest that allows you to breathe freely and deeply in your

upper ribcage.

Breathing Out Breathing In

The shoulder straps should pass over your shoulders without touching your neck or

the shoulder joint (acromioclavicular joint).


Gap between front

and rear pad leaving

space between hard

plastic waistband

and body.


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Shoulder Strap Clearance

If you cant achieve the correct clearance, you can relocate the shoulder straps,

front and back by...

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________

Adjusting Shoulder-Strap Clearance


Shoulder Joint Neck Clearance

Awaiting Details


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5/ Trimming for Force Placement. Mount the Steadicam, and push the rig out in

front of you. You should feel the resulting torque in your upper back at the level of

the shoulder blades. If the torque pushes your neck forward, shorten the rear rods.

If the rods contact your backeven lightlyreplace the shoulder pad with a

thicker one until the rear rods are lifted entirely clear of your back. You should

examine your posture in a mirror at this point. If the rods are touching your back

because you are slouched forward, you may wish to correct this by standing up

straight rather than by adding pads.

Optimum Torque-Resisting Level

Note: If youre an experienced Steadicam operator, youll notice you are using

different back muscles. This is because existing vests of all designs resist the torque

at mid-back level, necessitating that work be done entirely in the lower region of

the back. By doubling this lever arm, we halve the force necessary to

counterbalance the rig, and engage back muscles to the height of the shoulders.

Return the rig to an operating position close to the front of your body. You should

feel the weight of the Steadicam resting on your pelvic bones (ilia), and the

loading on your shoulders should be light. If not, adjust the length of the rods. If the

vest is fitted correctly, you should be able to lift your legs sufficiently as to climbstairs without disturbing the vest.


Torque


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6/ Freeing the Pelvis. In traditional Steadicam vests, it is necessary to hold the pelvis

level, when walking, to prevent the rig from pulling from side to side. In the Exovest,

you must walk normally, allowing your hip joints to rise and fall relative to one

another. If you walk with a level pelvis, you will be fighting the Exovests attempt to

conform to your body, and the rig may feel unbalanced.

Standing entirely upright, with the rig held comfortably in front of your body, shift

your weight sideways onto one leg, bringing the rig with you. Relax the stomach,

back, and leg muscles that are holding your pelvis level such that the unloaded

hip joint drops and your unloaded knee bends. You will feel the pivot system

shifting to accommodate this. Shift your weight, bringing the rig along, to the other

leg, letting the pelvis rotate naturally as the other hip joint rises.

Now bring this freedom of movement into a slow walk. You will find that, freeing

your pelvis, you will be able to walk more smoothly and with less effort.

Additionally, the socket block will remain at a more constant height relative to the

ground.

Freeing the Pelvis

Operating in a good missionary or Don Juan position, with the rig held toward the

front, rather than off to the side, will increase the efficiency of the pivot system,

and reduce muscular strain while operating.

7/ Operating Adjustments. By virtue of the double and triple-purchase velcro

straps, you can adjust the force-placement characteristics of the vest under load,

without having to dock the Steadicam. For convenience, retag the inner end of

the waistband velcro so the outer end closes close to the front of your body whereyou can grasp it easily.



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Adjusting Under Load

In between takes, relax the entire vest by releasing the over-centre lever at the

waist.

Over-Centre Lever in Relax Position

If you require a low lens height, or simply prefer to have the socket block mounted

lower than usual, you can set the bridge plate to jump over the lower pivot. Be

advised that the further the Steadicam arm-attachment point is from your own

shoulder, the more likely you are to limit your boom range.

Bridge Plate Jumping Lower Pivot



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8/ Rapid Release. If your Exovest is fitted with the rapid-release system, you should

adjust it now. Shorten the tape until the ring hangs in front of your shoulder at a

height that is convenient to grasp in an emergency.

Optimal Rapid Release Length

To operate the rapid release, you must first arm it by rotating the two arming pins,

at the shoulder and waist hinges, to their active positions.

Lower Rapid Release Armed

The rapid release will work only when the tape is correctly adjusted for length and

both pins are in the armed position. Its called a rapid release for good reason, so

arm it only when necessary.

If you need to jettison the rig in a hurry, lift your yoke hand to the release ring andpull down on it hard. The vest will disengage from your body and fall away in the

direction of the rig, allowing you to better escape dangerous situations.



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You can alternatively ask an experienced person, like a grip or stunt coordinator, to

stand beside you, holding the ring until danger has passed, or you can tie the ring

off, using a rope or a carabiner, to an immovable object. In these cases, you need

only let go of the rig and run away.

Remember, this is a last resort that will likely trash your entire system without any

guarantee of your actually escaping injury, so treat it as such, and not as a fail-

safe device.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Reconfiguring the Exovest for Goofy Operators. Its a simple matter to flip the

bridge plate for goofy operating (rig to the right side of the operators body), but

this puts the socket block on the same side as the over-centre lever. It also puts the

rig on the same side as the rapid release. To maximize utility, a goofy operator may

reconfigure the vest to be the mirror image of a standard vest. If it isnt

immediately obvious to you how to do this, contact a Tiffen representative for

advice, but for someone with a little mechanical experience, its 30 minutes work

to make a goofy-friendly vest that is still useable by regular operators.

Posture. The Exovest is designed to work in conjunction with good operating

posture. Before using the vest, please check your form in a mirror.

Whether walking or standing, angle yourself approximately 45 degrees to the rig.

Tuck the rig in close to your centre-line, and to your centre of gravity.

While standing in this position with the rig floating in balance in front of you, adjust

your foreaft threads such that, when looking from the side, you are leaning

neither forwards nor backwards, but are upright, with the centre of your shoulder

girdle directly over the centre of your pelvic girdle.

Adjust your side-to-side threads such that, when looking from the front, you are

leaning neither left nor right.

Do not allow your neck to collapse, but instead incline your head downwards from

the level of the top vertebra of your neck. This is the joint around which you nod,

and is how you should tilt your head towards the monitor.

Fore more information on Steadicam Posture, please visit http://steadivision.com/

steadipos.html

http://steadivision.com/steadipos.htmlhttp://steadivision.com/steadipos.htmlhttp://steadivision.com/steadipos.htmlhttp://steadivision.com/steadipos.htmlhttp://steadivision.com/steadipos.html


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Exovest Size Matrix. The Exovest comes in three sizes: small, medium, and large. If

the rods are too long or too short for you, they must be swapped out for different

sized rods. If the shoulder straps are too loose or too tight, they must also be

swapped out. If the waist straps are too short for you to loosen such that two sets of

metal slides are still engaged left and right (see below), then you need to swap

out the rear plastic sections of the waistband for a larger set.

Waistband Expanded to Maximum

If the waistband wont tighten sufficiently, simply shorten, by an equal length, each

of the rear plastic waistband sections using shears, blade, or saw, then smooth the

cut surfaces with sandpaper.

Table of component sizes for small, medium, and large Exovests.

VEST SIZE Waistband Shoulder Straps Rod Length

Small

Medium

Large

S M S

M M M

L L M

To determine what size of vest you require, take the following measurements. Girth,

as measured around the waist at the level of the top of the pelvic bone (iliac

crest). Height as measured from the top of the pelvic bone to the shoulder joint

(cromioclavicular joint).


Two Sets of

Slides Engaged

Rear Plastic

Waistband


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And read your size off this table.Girth

Height

26 to 32 32 to XX 32to XX XX to 50

less than 18

more than XX

S S

M M L

Alternatively, contact a Tiffen representative for advice.


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Fawcett Exovest User Manual (Draft)

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