bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Social Interaction Simulators for the Increase in Human Reliability in the Design of New Industrial Plants
Authors: Santos Venétia , Cristina Zamberlan Maria , Luis Oliveira José , Cardoso Ribeiro Fernando , Streit Priscilla , Hofstetter Pastura Flavia , Malka y Negri Thaly , Patrícia Guimarães Carla , Lopez Cid Gloria
Published: February 2022

Industrial projects today should be executed as soon as possible, taking into consideration current standards, corporate technical specifications, best practices and other information. Industrial plants are becoming more complex, and therefore so are the projects. The number of teams involved is large, as are the number of documents generated and manipulated. Consequently, it becomes necessary to develop new tools that are agile and that can be used by managers and designers. In order to increase the reliability of the human design of new refineries, a simulator of social interactions has been developed, based on serious games, to be used in the design process, in the management of new projects and in the training of new operators. Into this simulator are inserted the PDMS database of the new project, the database of 3D digital human models, and criteria established by the required standards. With this simulator one can evaluate new plants, test human interactions to the operation of valves and other components in the industrial area, test collective work in specific scenarios, as well as simulate maintenance work. One can quickly test different scenarios and different design alternatives. The simulator stores the actions performed by the avatars or virtual operators, which routes were taken, communications exchanged and strategies adopted by each operator, in order to incorporate them in the training for novice operators. According to the results obtained, these simulators contribute to the compliance of the project, and to reduce time and errors during the design process. They optimize control in implementation and validation of the project, and also contribute to the training of new operators.
Creating Accessibility to Web Contents for Colorblind People
Authors: Ribeiro a Abel Gomes Madalena
Published: February 2022

The color is a very important asset when comes the time of interacting with other people and the ambient world, where the color may turn into the message itself. As known, about 5% of the people all over the world suffer from colorblindness, also formally called color vision deficit (CVD). It is clear that this visual impairment compromises the way those people see and interpret their surroundings and the visual messages they receive continuously. This is particularly relevant not only for those who need to correctly interpret the traffic lights — and recall that color blind because people see reds and greens in the same way —, but also for those who use the web for leisure and professional purposes daily. With this critical problem in mind, this paper proposes a new algorithm to adjust those colors that shed confusion on dichromate people (deuteranopes and protanopes). This algorithm takes advantage of a simple formula that operates on the HSV color space. The implementation of the algorithm was made by using web compliant languages, which confirm the appliance viability on web, which contributes to achieve a more inclusive visual communication. The final goal is the integration on system with the ability of performing the recoloring automatically images and text blocks, providing a better accessibility to the web pages to the CVD people, so reaching a more ergonomic design.
Ergonomic Assessment of Activities of Front Office Worker in Selected Hospitality Units and Record Related Health
Authors: Mehra Neha , Rani Sandhya , Sharma Promila , Joshi Pratibha
Published: February 2022

Often when we imagine the kind of workers who get workplace injuries, we think of those who need to exert a lot of physical energy on the job. It is true that employees in these work environments may be at greater risk for injury, but office workers are also at risk. Front Office work is rapidly changing, as new developments in computer technology come along which can make our jobs easier, but which also can present new problems for both management and employees. There is enough information contained here to allow a single employee to set up their own workstation to suit the way they work. This paper provides with the information and tools necessary to analyze office jobs related health problems. A descriptive research enumerates the existing conditions in which the researcher has no control over the variables and can report only actual conditions. The interview schedule was found to be an appropriate tool, which would adequately gather information pertaining to research work. Considering the objective of the study, research was carried out at Pancham Hotel of Bareilly. A sample size is a definite plan for obtaining a sample from a given population. Total sample sizes of 30 were selected. Many office injuries are caused by the repetitive tasks that put strain on our muscles and joints. There are several health related problems faced by office workers which affect their daily working schedule such as chronic back pain, gastric bronchial, asthma, diabetes, depression, arthritis, anaemia and headache. Sixty percent respondents quite seldom suffered from digestion difficulties whereas 12 percent respondents quite often and only 16 percent respondent almost always suffered from digestion difficulties. Several research studies reveals that gastrointestinal complaints of gastric upset, gas, constipation, poor eating etc. are strongly correlated with front office work.
Automotive Central Console Interface Design
Authors: T. Soares Fernando , Simões abc Paulo , Simoes ad Ricardo
Published: February 2022

This work was aimed at enhancing driving experience and safety by understanding the possibility of improving the central console physical interface experience, ergonomics and usability when dealing with in-vehicle tasks. An examination was carried out about some of the physical central console interfaces, measuring which one performed better concerning driver distraction and ease of use in double task situations. For that, a driving simulator was built, and a series of dual task tests were conducted to retrieve driving and performance data. The telemetry data about the driving line comparisons relative to a reference path, and the mean speed through the test sectors was compared to the eye tracking data, which was then compared and related to the modified self-perception subjective workload NASA Raw TLX test. It is expected that from this analysis some conclusions could be achieved that lead to an improvement opportunity to the central console interfaces. This could result from a combination of the systems, or could even give opportunity to develop an alternative new solution or a good practice guide for future design and developments.
Safety Analysis of the Deepwater Horizon Blowout Based on the Functional Resonance Analysis Model (FRAM)
Authors: Ferreira Pereira Rogério , do R. Vaz Morgado Claudia
Published: February 2022

The Functional Resonance Analysis Model (FRAM) defines a framework for accident analysis based on the systems theory and resilience engineering, making it more suitable for complex systems. The purpose of this article is the usage of FRAM to understand the variability in the process of offshore drilling in the Deepwater Horizon accident, and the variability that possibly might exist under other offshore drilling operations. The Deepwater Horizon accident in the Gulf of Mexico occurred when the Horizon ultra-deepwater semisubmersible oil drilling rig exploded and sank in the northern Gulf of Mexico on April 20, 2010, killing 11 crew members, injuring 17 others and initiating a huge marine oil spill. The Deepwater Horizon is one of the greatest environmental accidents in the history of oil. Recent demands for new discoveries and exploitation has led companies to challenge even deeper waters, as in the cases of companies in Brazil and South Africa indicating a need to better understand the overall drilling process to avoid accidents. Results of FRAM analysis of Deepwater Horizon accident show that functions "drilling" "cement placement" and "temporary abandonment" are main functions and they were not prepared to cope with process variability to ensure that processes involving diverse and complex enterprises were resilient enough to kept working when dealing with disturbances.
Are Deliberative People More Consistent in Decision Making?
Authors: Hanák Róbert
Published: February 2022

The preference for intuition and deliberation scale (PID) as a cognitive style measure was used to investigate whether more deliberative participants (identified by self-report PID inventory) would also show higher motivation to properly and normatively solve a task designed to measure their inconsistency and discrimination to details (CWS Index). 161 (103 women) managers and administrative workers were asked to evaluate 21 fictional job candidates. The decision task was designed so that participants could work according to their preferences – everyone had enough time to analyse the logic behind the task. Significant differences were found among all four groups (deliberative, intuitive, both below median, both above median) in levels of inconsistency. Totally consistent respondents were significantly more likely to be from the deliberative and mixed (high in deliberation and in intuition) groups.
The Roots of Self-Doubt (and Self-Loathing) in the West
Authors: W. Pidluzny Jonathan
Published: February 2022

Democratic self-doubt is manifest in many ways, some of them a threat to the perpetuation of the very political orders responsible for the exceptional appeal of life in Western societies. This paper begins by defining the phenomenon and proceeds to examine its roots. Five contributing factors are identified, all of them in some way a constituent element of the very way of life, our confidence in which they threaten to erode. The factors discussed are the following: first, the value neutral nature of experimental natural science and its effect on the liberal arts; second, European romanticism and its suffusion through the entire cultural life of the West; third, a mania for equality which, although a fundamental principle of healthy republicanism, can (when pushed to the extreme) erode citizens’ pride in their own regime; fourth, materialism and material abundance, which distract citizens from the innately human longings and cut them off from participation in public life; fifth, egalitarianism desiccates the liberal arts—one of the greatest legacies of the West—and enervates the democrat’s capacity to be moved by them. The paper ends by considering a more insidious form of self-hatred that emerged from the thought of Friedrich Nietzsche and Karl Marx.
Tactile Displays: From the Cockpit to the Clinic
Authors: McGratha Braden , Rupertb Angus
Published: February 2022

There is a great deal in common between a pilot maintaining controlled flight in aviation and a person maintaining balance while standing upright. Both activities require sufficient and accurate sensory information provided in a format permitting the central nervous system to respond quickly with appropriate corrective motor actions to prevent a fall or a mishap. Loss of control in either environment is a frequent occurrence when sensory information is compromised such as in degraded visual environments (DVE), or when a patient experiences loss of sensation. We developed an alternative sensory cueing device using the sense of touch, which can prevent loss of control in both the aviation and terrestrial environments. A single belt with tactile transducers provides touch cues concerning direction, velocity, and extent of movement. This continuous, intuitive, orientation information to pilots and patients reduces the likelihood of a loss of aircraft control or a fall. The algorithms providing tactile cues are similar for a pilot hovering a helicopter in DVE and a sensory-compromised patient performing balance tasks. The rapidity of learning correct responses to tactile cues reflects the intuitive nature of tactile cueing.
Effectiveness of Vibrotactile and Spatial Audio Directional Cues for USAF Pararescue Jumpers (PJs)
Authors: Christopher Brill J. , E. Scerra Veronica
Published: February 2022

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relative effectiveness of vibrotactile and 3-dimensional (3D) auditory cues. The vibrotactile display consisted of a belt of stimulators worn around the abdomen, and the 3D audio display consisted of synthesized binaural cues played through headphones. Seven participants were presented with two types of vibrotactile signals and four types of 3D audio signals in eight azimuthal directions: 0° (ventral midline), 45° left/right, 90° left/right, 135° left/right, and 180° (dorsal midline). Participants indicated the perceived direction by clicking on discrete virtual response buttons surrounding an isomorphic on-screen graphic. On average, localization accuracy was significantly better for vibrotactile signals (92%) than for 3D audio signals (65%) ( p= .004). One type of 3D audio signal, dubbed the alternate clicktrain, failed to yield a significant difference (p = .08), though this is likely due to the small sample size. The results suggest vibrotactile displays may provide a viable alternative to 3D audio for spatial cueing, which has implications for developing potential system for US Air Force Pararescue Jumpers (PJs).
Features of Collaboration in the VirCA Immersive 3D Environment
Authors: Péter Hámornik Balázs , Köles Máté , Komlódi b Károly Hercegfi Anita , Izsóa Lajos
Published: February 2022

Real time, synchronous collaborative work mostly happens in real world situations. There are applications that allow computer-mediated synchronous collaboration, but they are far from the experience of a real life meeting. The Virtual Collaboration Arena allows multiple people to work in real time in a virtual space collaboratively. Relatively little is known about how collaboration in virtual reality compares to physically co-located activities. In order to investigate these differences and to reveal any usability issues the system has, we studied 20 pairs of participants working together on a simple cooperative task that required planning. One of the participants was in an immersive 3D cave and the other participant carried out the task from a desktop computer. They communicated over an audio channel in addition to seeing each other as avatars in the space. The cooperative communication was recorded and the conversation was transcribed. The transcripts were coded into three categories of communicative acts: 1) utterance related to coordination; 2) utterances related to information sharing for the task; and 3) usability-related communication. The sessions were divided into three stages of the task and the ratio of the three types of communicative acts were compared across the three stages. According to the Cochran’s tests there were significant differences between the temporal sections of the task for coordination (Q(2)=72,13; p < 0.001), information sharing for the task (Q(2)=77,06; p < 0.001), and usability (Q(2)=15,14; p < 0.001). Coordination utterances were frequent in the beginning and the ending sections of the collaboration. Information sharing utterances appeared in a higher ratio in the middle section. Thus, in the beginning and at the end of the sessions our participants were focused on explicitly coordinating their tasks (“What shall we do?” and “What has been done?”), while in the middle of the session they were focused on sharing the content for the schedule accompanied by less explicit coordination.The amount of usability-related comments goes down after the first section. The decrease of usability-related interactions along the progression of time is showing a possible learning effect or the effect of practice that grows through the task. The pattern of variation in communicative actions along the three phases of task completion indicates that the virtual 3D environment is usable; the participants are able to learn to use it. These findings show that this 3D virtual environment can appropriately enable collaborative information interpretation and sharing activities.
Effects of Inhaling Essential Oil on Decreasing Mental Fatigue:
Authors: Physiological Indices Study A
Published: February 2022

Essential oil inhalation is one of the important aromatherapy. Essential oils are always used to dispel fatigue by officer workers. Owing to lack of objective measured data of the effect on decreasing fatigue for essential oil, the reliability of subjective experiment from questionnaire has always been challenged. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effect on decreasing mental fatigue for inhaling essential oil by using physiological indices including Electroencephalogram (EEG) and heart rate variability (HRV). The basic and ratio indices of EEG power reflecting the drowsiness and relaxation levels, and the variety of HRV reflecting the condition of mental workload were used to evaluate the effect on decreasing mental fatigue substantially for inhaling essential oil. Twenty college students aged from twenty to twenty-five years old recruited for subjects participated the experimental test. Before experimental test, the subjects must fill in NASA-TLX self-evaluation inventory and measured their EEGs and heart rate variability (HRV) for five minutes. The subjects undertook their school courses about four hours and then inhaled essential oil. The study found that EEG power ratio indices (+)/ decreased and / increased after inhaling essential oil. It demonstrated that the subjects inhaled essential oil would facilitate their relaxation obviously. The result of heart rate variability showed that low-frequency component LF decreased, high-frequency component HF increased and LH/HF decreased obviously after inhaling essential oil. For NASA-TLX rating scales measurement, the participants subjectively felt more relaxed. It revealed that the subjects had remarkable effect to decreasing mental fatigue after inhaling essential oil. To summarize as mentioned above, our study found that essential oil had obvious effect on decreasing mental fatigue and facilitating relaxation.
A Semi-Automatic Approach for the Integration of Structural Karlstad Enterprise Modeling Schemata
Authors: Bellström Peter
Published: February 2022

In this paper, we describe and discuss a semi-automatic approach for the integration of structural Karlstad Enterprise Modeling (EM) Schemata. The focus is on the implementation-independent level and therefore we treat an EM schema as a high-level description of data for some part of the future information system. Our point of departure is the classic four-phase integration process comprised of pre-integration, comparison of the schemata, conforming the schemata and, merging and restructuring. In relation to the semi-automatic approach described and discussed, we argue that several rules and knowledge repositories should be used to facilitate the whole integration process. However, it is also argued that the domain experts are still a very important source of knowledge and should therefore also be involved during the whole integration process. The research approach is inspired by design science in which the end product should be a useful artifact. In this paper, the artifact is provided in the described semi-automatic approach for the integration of Structural Karlstad EM schemata. As its main contribution, the paper offers a holistic view of the described and discussed semi-automatic approach for the integration of structural Karlstad EM schemata.
Evaluating Digital Library’s Service Concept and Pre-Launch Implementation
Authors: Kautonen Heli
Published: February 2022

The paper presents a challenging online service concept for culture and science, namely the public interface of the Finnish Digital Library, known as Finna. Its most distinctive features originate from the fact that practically all Finnish libraries, archives, and museums are prospective partners through Finna. From the viewpoint of human-computer interaction (HCI), Finna’s greatest challenges are 1) to design and implement user experience for a heterogeneous target population, and 2) to design and implement a service that merges differing information structures and conventions on the use of libraries’, archives’, and museums’ materials. The paper focuses on four independent usability studies that evaluated the test version of Finna. The studies were planned to cover the most relevant questions and to reveal existing usability problems. Following the current principles of work organization, Finna’s research collaboration partners provided the resources for conducting the studies. The studies’ findings concerned the validity of Finna’s service concept and its implementation. The results indicate that the service may be accepted by its end-users if three issues are resolved: the coverage of content, the representation of materials, and the identity of the service. This will require collaboration between all project partners and Finna’s designers.
The Access Rights to Communication Resources in the Smart Local Service System: First Insights
Authors: Maria Golinellia Gaetano , Sianob Alfonso , Piciocchi Agostino Vollero Francesca Conte Paolo
Published: February 2022

This paper aims at highlighting the relevant role of Service Science perspective in place governance. The study conceptualizes a new form of territorial “governmentality” capable of managing the access to place communication resources and activating decision-making collaborative logics with stakeholders. The methodology envisages the integrating of Service Science Management and Engineering+Design and Viable Systems Approach. Smart local governance has to enable a broader access to place communication resources, regulating the access rights. “Open Governance” mechanisms and access to shared place communication resources facilitate the value co-creation process with stakeholders. The conceptual paper presents the typical limitations of the deductive approach. The paper argues that stakeholders play a proactive role in the creation, innovation and utilization of place-specific communication resources through high degree of interaction, availability and accessibility to a growing body of information. The paper offers new insights on local governance issue, emphasizing the role of the governance in ensuring stakeholders’ access to communication resources. Developing improved methods to facilitate effective value co-creation process is valuable for a participatory and interactive approach in place communication management.
An Analysis of Drug Administration Taskson Safety Management in Medical Centers
Authors: Yamao Naoki , Okada Y.
Published: February 2022

The safety management in various hospitals recently has begun in order to reduce the incidents and prevent human errors. Among incidents that occurred in hospital, many are related to drug administration error. Drug administration error is a type of human error that occurs somewhere in the process spanning from medicine prescription by the doctor through administration by the nurse. We examined whether there is any problem with the incident report on the drug administration error in the hospital. Then, we found that it is difficult for safety manager with little experience, to find the problems in drug administration task. Also we found that they didn’t know how they would discuss countermeasures. Therefore we studied to help safety manager find and take measure in work including dangerous factors at drug administration tasks by evaluating the risk of the work. The method is evaluating the risk of the work in the drug administration tasks by using Factors List, Risk Score and Influence of the Factors. By using this method, it helps safety managers in the hospitals understand problems of the work in the drug administration tasks and activate the recurrence prevention activities of medical accident.
How Quality Management supports Sustainable Development?
Authors: Jasiulewicz-Kaczmarek Malgorzata
Published: February 2022

In the following paper an attempt to present the role of quality management in enterprises following sustainable development strategy was taken. Methods striving for quality(defined in their broadest meaning) are the basic catalyzer for changes which enable identification of new opportunities and definition of alternative actions to be taken. They focus on the best practices and means leading to improvement in the areas jeopardizing economic, environmental and social infrastructure.
Comfort Design Through Music and Emotion: Effects of Passengers' Activities on Comfort
Authors: Kruithof Aernout , Visch Valentijn , Vink Peter , Pedgley Owain
Published: February 2022

Comfort experiences are not caused by a single factor, but are the result of diverse components such as postures, cognitive- and emotional experiences, as well as a person’s activity. The present empirical study investigated the experienced comfort of car passengers in the rear seat. We varied typical car passengers’ activities such as listening to music, working, and looking out the window. Dependent variables were the passenger’s comfort rating, his emotional valence- and arousal-related experience, his heart rate, and his seating position. The results (N = 23/16) showed that music positively influences comfort experiences. Moreover, correlation analysis between the dependent variables showed that comfort was significantly correlated only to the positive emotional valence component, and not to more physiological components such as emotional arousal, heart rate or seating position. The results suggest that car designers can improve the comfort of rear passengers by focussing on music and emotion design in contrast to the more conventional approach of physical ergonomics.
Degree of Commitment Among Students at a Technological University – Testing a New Research Instrument
Authors: Einolander Jarno , Vanharanta Hannu
Published: February 2022

Just as commitment in organizations is very important for long-term success, commitment to one’s educational institute is important, too. Higher education provides the foundation for the social, economic and political growth of a country. Therefore, improving student retention by successfully delivering quality education, leading to student graduation and integration in the workforce, is crucial. It has been argued that students stay in their higher education institutes for similar reasons to those that make employees committed and engaged in organizations.In our previous studies we have created a literature-based generic model of organizational commitment and engagement that could be used in conjunction with an Internet-based application to evaluate their various components and primary correlate constructs. In this study we took this evaluation model to the context of a higher educational institute to try to evaluate students’ commitment to their university.As a result, we identified several development needs in order to evaluate students’ commitment with our application. Because the statements in our original instrument were aimed for use in the organizational domain, some of them were not suited to studies on commitment in an educational institute. Looking at the results of our study, we decided that the overall construct of our model and the wording of applicable statements should be modified in order to create an appropriate instrument for use in an academic institution. This was done based on Bean’s Student Attrition Model. However, collective analysis of the test results clearly identified that even with the preliminary model it is possible to find where students see the needs for greatest development and how they view their current state of engagement.
The Error-Related Negativity as a Neural Indicator of Error Processing and its Modulation by Individual Differences
Authors: Mojsa-Kaja ab Justyna , Gawlowska Ewa Beldzik ab Magda , Domagalik ab Aleksandra , Marek ab Tadeusz
Published: February 2022

The error-related negativity (ERN) is a negative deflection in the event-related potential that is maximal approximately 50 ms after the commission of an error. The ERN is generated in the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), a region implicated in both cognitive and emotional processing. Despite a growing body of research concerning the ERN, discussion regarding its functional significance remains open. The conflict and reinforcement-learning theories point at specific, ACC-related processes, involved in generation of the ERN and describe the process of error monitoring itself in human brain. Above mentioned theories explain what happens on neuronal level when individual commits an error, but they do not emphasize the crucial role of individual differences in modulating the ERN magnitude. On the other hand, there is a dynamically growing area of research suggesting that ERN is heritable, stable over time and linked with several dimensions of personality, that may interact with motivational, contextual factors and moderate the magnitude of the ERN. This approach defines ERN as a neural marker of a neurobehavioral trait and variation in its amplitude is linked with individual differences having impact on emotional or motivational aspects of error processing. Therefore, we would focus on selective literature review concerning ERN in the light of motivational factors and individual differences and present implications and future research directions in this area.
Analysing Eye-Tracking Data: From Scanpaths and Heatmaps to the Dynamic Visualisation of Areas of Interest
Authors: Drusch Gautier , Christian Bastien J.M. , Paris Stéphane
Published: February 2022

To understand the visual behaviors of people searching for information on Web pages, heatmaps and Areas Of Interest (AOI) are generally used. These two techniques bring interesting information on how Web pages are scanned by several users. However, two remarks can be expressed: the first one relates to the fact that heatmaps are usually used to represent fixation areas for a given task after it is completed. Thus, it does not represent fixation areas over time. The second remark relates to the use of AOI, which must be defined by the analyst. We present a method, which address these two points. This bottom-up approach is based on a mean-shift clustering procedure for the identification of areas of interest, which takes into account the temporal aspect. The identification of AOI is thus data driven. This approach allows us to show the evolution of a posteriori AOI both in space and time. The limitations and implications of this new approach are discussed
Biomechanical Model of Bare-Breasts
Authors: Running During
Published: February 2022

Sports bras are designed to reduce mammary glands or breast movement during exercises, but there is no standardized, valid and reliable method to evaluate relative three-dimensional (3D) breast movement; and there is no literature to predict the 3D force acting on the breasts during activities. A reliable method is essential to evaluate 3D breast movement and to determine the effective design features of supportive sports bras. This study derived and validated a new Breast Coordinate System (BCS) for investigating 3D breast movement, so as to identify the most effective bra features and to analyze the effects of breast volume and bra strap properties on breast movement, then to develop theoretical models of breast force generated during bare-breasted running. In the light of this, 3D mechanical models have been developed based on a system comprising a mass, springs and dampers. The orthogonal force exerted on the breasts during running was derived. The predicted results of maximum breast force were verified with previous literature. The new methods will contribute to future research on human locomotion and the design of close-fitting garments.
The Market Conditions Based Taxonomy of Modern Manufacturing Practices
Authors: Pawłowski Krystian
Published: February 2022

The subject of research is the taxonomy of modern methods and techniques of management. Management methods and their classification have always been the subject of research in both theoretical aspect (defining logical relationships in an organized set of methods) and empirical aspect (verifying their practical application). Empirical studies have been conducted multiple times in various countries. The objective of research was most frequently: the goals (reasons) for implementation, and the actual extent and results of the implementation. The purpose of this article is to present the results of research on the taxonomy of modern management methods in the context of situational determinants of enterprises in the process of implementing these methods. Such formulated problem is a result of a belief that the selection of modern methods of management in companies is subjected to both internal and external situational determinants. In my research I intend to test the hypothesis that an important factor for the company situational determinants is that company’s market orientation. The research process is divided into two phases: 1. Phase of the literature study and preparation of methodology for empirical research, 2 Empirical research and development of results. This article summarizes the results of the literature study and the main assumptions of the model of empirical research, which will be carried out at the beginning of 2014. The scope of the research includes 39 methods and techniques of management.
A Comparison of the Usability of Locally-Produced and Commercially-Acquired Telemedicine Device for Filipino Health Workers
Authors: C. Grepo Lorelie , P. Custodio Benette
Published: February 2022

With the advancement of technology today, various industries have benefitted from innovation of systems that have been and are being developed, with the healthcare sector being one of them. Usability evaluation of medical devices is essential to ensure its effectiveness and to increase acceptability of the technology. In the Philippines, there has been a project on development of a locally-produced medical device. Similar to any other health care applications, there is a need to ensure that this is usable for Filipino health workers. A usability evaluation was conducted on the prototype of this telemedicine device, focusing on maternal monitoring, with user testing and interviews. Another similar device (commercially-acquired) was evaluated and compared to the existing design. Results of the evaluation indicate that there were usability problems in terms of the hardware and interface for both the locally-produced and commercially-acquired device designs. The former has a lot to improve in terms of its interface. Both still needs further improvement to make it easier for users to use the device. Usability evaluation has been very useful in identifying the areas for improvement in the design of the medical device and is seen as an essential part of its development.
Human Aspects of the Measurement System Analysis
Authors: Diering Magdalena , Kujawińska Agnieszka
Published: February 2022

Quality control in manufacturing process means checking the consistency of the process or product with the internal or external customer requirements. Most often it is done by direct measurement or observation. The main objective of the quality control is to increase the chance that the product (process) is free from defects when passing it on further stages of the production process or on to use. It is difficult to find the type of industry, which is not performed by the demands resulting from quality control. In many industries, quality control plays a special role, especially where the manufacturing outcome is important for the client. The pharmaceutical and medical industries are examples of a situation in which quality status of manufacturing process has a direct impact on the patients health and even – in some cases – their lives. Alternative control is a special case of quality control. It can be performed by measuring or checking and classifying the object (product) into one of a number of states (in the specific case – into one of two, for example: good/bad or OK/No OK). Alternative quality control may be carried out with – for example – use of specialized equipment that automatically classify the items (for example, with use of machine with pattern recognition module to verify circuit boards or machine for printing color evaluation) or with the use of human senses (as visual control, control), man knowledge and his experience (know-how). To assure that quality control of manufacturing is a reliable process and its outcomes are on accepted level, measurement system must be evaluated (variation of the measurement system should be known and accepted). There are many procedures to assess the capability and reliability of measurement system. The most common and widely used procedure to assess alternative measurement system is – on the base of authors experience – KAPPA method. It allows to assess the impact of factors such as: human factors, instrument/gauge, environment etc. on the reliability of the control.The paper presents some possible directions of development of attribute measurement systems procedures. These challenges derive from need to assess the impact of factors related to the determinants of human psychophysical on the results of the statistical evaluation of measurement systems.
The Effect of Auditory Feedback on Websites Users Perception
Authors: . Sheng-Hann , . Li , Hwang Sheue-Ling
Published: February 2022

In this investigation, we design a website named UN.com that has three scenes and with different numbers of auditory feedback. An experiment was designed to explore the application of auditory feedback. The better situation to use auditory feedback has been found out. We found a significant correlation between auditory feedback and website usability. Too many auditory feedbacks may cause negative effect. The result may provide web designer some suggestion on auditory feedback to prevent negative effects.
The Challenge of Early Mobilization on the Intensive Care Unit: The Ergonomic Opportunities and Barriers
Authors: JJ Knibbe Hanneke , E. Knibbea Nico , Waaijerb Elly
Published: February 2022

In recent years ICU-care and ICU-management of the critically ill patient is paying more attention to long term effects of the stay on the ICU and of the negative consequences of immobilization, long periods of bed rest, mechanical ventilation and medication aimed at pain reduction and sedation. Immobilization in bed affects practically all body conditions within a very short time frame: ranging from less than an hour to a few days. Some of these effects are reversible, some are not and may result in negative long term effects of the stay on the ICU. Recently new devices and equipment have been developed that enable mobilization of ICU patients at an extremely early stage, even without the patient being aware of being mobilized and being ventilated. This so-called Early Mobilisation (EM) has shown to be safe, feasible and improves outcomes both in the short term and especially also in the long run. There is a gradually building body of knowledge demonstrating the positive effects. In spite of these positive developments mobilizing critically ill and very passive patients in the complicated and often crowded ICU environment is also a first degree ergonomic challenge. Currently occupational musculoskeletal disorders are already prevalent in an ICU environment among nurses and physical therapists across the world. Lifting, assisting and supporting these complicated patients often attached to monitoring and (live) supportive equipment 24 hours a day can be very strenuous. EM requires considerable additional effort from these workers. These ergonomic implications will need to be resolved if an EM policy is to be successfully implemented. Therefore a study was undertaken describing the current situation and the potential of EM for the ICU’s in Dutch hospitals. The results indicate a whole array of different descriptions of EM and a lack of consensus, the lack of sufficient and adequate equipment especially when it comes to ergonomic considerations for the nurses, a lack of knowledge of what is required for EM and a lack of up-to-date protocols indicating safe procedures for both patient and nurse. Nevertheless most nurses are convinced of the need for and relevance of EM and see opportunities there. However: they are mostly focused on the patient side of EM and have not sufficiently analyzed the potential consequences for their own health.
Music Therapy as an Interactive Rehabilitation Tool for People with Alzheimer’s: Ergonomical Issues
Authors: Andreonib G. , Carpentieroa A. , Costaa F. , Muschiatoa S. , Spreaficoc L.
Published: February 2022

The aim of this paper is to report the process to develop a new interactive tool for Alzheimer disease that utilizes music therapy. It is a design approach based on users’ needs, which involves the collaboration between patients, doctors, music therapists and designers, in order to develop a tool that can effectively works with patient’s memories. The work process was based on a multidisciplinary approach, and demonstrates how it is possible influence in a positive way different kind of patients, stimulating their lost memories with a new music therapy tool. The analysis work about the patients’ mental health, and their musical memories, was a fundamental part of the design process; the integration of new technologies – and the acceptance of those -, was one of the first goals that we wanted to achieve during the interaction between the product and the patient. With the assistance of an expert in music therapy, we have been able to integrate traditional tools for medical evaluation of memory and cognitive deterioration with new stimuli from the past life memories. When we finished designing the product, we conducted an evaluative test; this is the methodological process that we used to conduct it:a. Preparation:Setting: a room with no distractions, in order to create a relaxing environment that would not distract the patient’s attention.Staff: Music therapist / psychologistInclusion criteria: patients suffering from dementia (Alzheimer's) MMSE score = 15-20 (intermediate phase).We have chosen the interaction with patients undergoing intermediate because, since they still have good verbal expressive capabilities, they could directly, and more easily, provide important insights and analysis reflections.b. Tracks selection:6 tracks were needed in order for the test to take place; those tracks needed to be known and significant to the test subject. Tracks were selected following the directions of the medical director of the facility. We selected 30 tracks: in this way it would have been possible to select the 6 that would suit the patient best. The songs were divided into three categories: classical, traditional, light jazz.c. TestTo establish a communication channel linked to the archaic manipulation and sounds, from which arise the emotions of the person, speaking on the same conducting sound variations .After explaining in simple words what the object is, it is asked to press one of the buttons placed on the faces of the cube.After the button is pressed, a song previously selected is played; the therapist asks to the patients if he knows the song and if he likes it. After the patient has familiarized with the object, he is asked to press a button he has already pushed; then the therapist asks if he recognizes the song associated to the same button.
Tailoring Motivational Mechanisms to Engage Teenagers in Healthy
Authors: A Concept Life-Style:
Published: February 2022

Overweight and obesity are the first leading risk related to nutrition for global deaths, in the last few years it outranked the famine. Obesity increases the risk of several debilitating, and deadly diseases, including diabetes, heart disease, and some cancers. Due to the many health risks associated with obesity, the financial burden that the treatment of this disease exercises on the European healthcare system is enormous. For this reason, the best strategy relies in prevention. In particular, the pervasiveness of technology can leverage an important advantage for the promotion of healthy behaviors in the new generations. This paper introduces PEGASO, a technological multidisciplinary project funded by the European Commission that aims at creating an ecosystem that can enable teenagers to adopt healthy habits leading to a healthy life-style. The ICT system plays an important role in the PEGASO ecosystem. This behavior change support system integrates a Virtual Individual Model that allows characterizing the physiological status, physical condition and the psychological status for each user. This allows the elaboration of tailored interventions aiming at promoting the adoption of healthy habits by the users. This paper describes this concept introducing the Virtual Individual Model and discusses the possible interventions related to the promotion of physical exercise and of healthy dietary habits. At the end of the paper, some indications about the future development of the PEGASO project are provided.
Arm and Neck Pain in Ultrasonographists
Authors: Claesᵃ Frank , Bergerᵇ Jan , Stassijnsᵃ Gaetane
Published: February 2022

The aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of upper body quadrant pain among ultrasonographists and to evaluate the association between individual ergonomics, musculoskeletal disorders, and occurrence of neck pain. A hundred and ten Belgian and Dutch male and female hospital ultrasonographists were consecutively enrolled in the study. Data on work-related ergonomic and musculoskeletal disorders were collected with an electronic inquiry, including questions about ergonomics, symptoms and work related factors. Subjects with the screen on their left had significantly more neck pain. Depending on the work space, high-low tables increased the chance on developing neck pain. A screen on eye level caused less neck. Employees with a fixed working space were less susceptible to arm pain. The prevalence of arm pain was significantly higher on the vascular department compared to the radiology, urology and gynecology departments. In the prevention of upper limb pain in ultrasonographists, attention should be paid to the work environment in general, and to the more specific aspects of the ultrasound workstation layout. Primary ergonomic prevention could help the ultrasonographist to work painless during his medical tasks.
Evaluation of Kawaii Size by Measuring ECG
Authors: Ohkura Michiko , Yamasaki Yosuke
Published: February 2022

Kawaii, which represents an affective value, includes such positive meanings as cute, lovable, and small. In the 21st century, the affective values of industrial products are becoming more important. However, since few studies have focused on kawaii attributes, we are systematically analyzing kawaii products themselves: the kawaii feelings evoked by the shapes, colors, sizes, textures and tactile sensations caused by the materials of such products. In this paper, we refocused on kawaii sizes and performed experiments using both Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality to evaluate a virtual object’s kawaii sizes by questionnaires and electrocardiograms (ECGs).
Cognitive Training Profile for Older People in China
Authors: Dahua Wang , Hongrui Xiao
Published: February 2022

Nowadays China is facing a serious problem of aging population. Older people suffer losses in aspects, especially in cognitive function. It is necessary and worthwhile to design effective cognitive training programs, based on our knowledge of cognitive aging mechanisms, to help older people maintain and improve their cognitive abilities. The present paper aims to introduce the development of cognitive training program for older people from the following three aspects: a) the status quo of aging society in China, b) cognitive aging and its underlying mechanisms, and c) the approach and practice of cognitive training.