Rahman Mahjabeen, Karwowski Waldemar, Sapkota Nabin, Ismail Lina, Alhujailli Ashraf, Sumano Raul Fernandez, Hancock P A
Computational Neuroergonomics Laboratory, Department of Industrial Engineering and Management Systems, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL 32816, USA.
Department of Engineering Technology, Northwestern State University of Louisiana, Natchitoches, LA 71497, USA.
Brain Sci. 2023 Jul 4;13(7):1027. doi: 10.3390/brainsci13071027.
A variety of subjective measures have traditionally been used to assess the perception of physical exertion at work and related body responses. However, the current understanding of physical comfort experienced at work is very limited. The main objective of this study was first to investigate the magnitude of isometric arm forces exerted by females at different levels of physical comfort measured on a new comfort scale and, second, to assess their corresponding neural signatures expressed in terms of power spectral density (PSD). The study assessed PSDs of four major electroencephalography (EEG) frequency bands, focusing on the brain regions controlling motor and perceptual processing. The results showed statistically significant differences in exerted arm forces and the rate of perceived exertion at the various levels of comfort. Significant differences in power spectrum density at different physical comfort levels were found for the beta EEG band. Such knowledge can be useful in incorporating female users' force requirements in the design of consumer products, including tablets, laptops, and other hand-held information technology devices, as well as various industrial processes and work systems.
传统上，人们使用各种主观测量方法来评估工作中的体力消耗感知以及相关的身体反应。然而，目前对于工作中身体舒适度的理解非常有限。本研究的主要目的，一是调查女性在新的舒适度量表上测量的不同身体舒适水平下所施加的等长手臂力量的大小，二是评估以功率谱密度（PSD）表示的相应神经特征。该研究评估了四个主要脑电图（EEG）频段的PSD，重点关注控制运动和感知处理的脑区。结果显示，在不同舒适水平下，所施加的手臂力量和感知用力率存在统计学上的显著差异。在脑电图β频段，不同身体舒适水平下的功率谱密度存在显著差异。这些知识对于在消费产品设计中纳入女性用户的力量需求很有用，这些产品包括平板电脑、笔记本电脑和其他手持信息技术设备，以及各种工业流程和工作系统。
