The earliest large-scale surveys of the human physique were performed by the U.S. Army during the First World War for reference in making uniforms, and anthropometric data were widely used in World War Ⅱ for the design of helmets, fighter cockpits, submarines, and other items of military equipment.
最早的大規模人體計測，是美國陸軍在第一次世界大戰末期，為了製作軍服而做。發展到第二次大戰後，人體計測資料已被廣泛應用在國防科技上，如飛機駕駛艙、砲塔、氧氣罩、潛水艇及飛行衣的設計等。