Proceedings of the 21st Congress of the International Ergonomics Association (IEA 2021)

This article presents the path traveled by a team of ergonomists to adapt the methods they used for ergonomic actions. New ways for performing ergonomic actions were necessary due to the worldwide Covid-19 Pandemic. Face-to-face observation of work activities in development was no longer possible. This study presents the challenges, limitations, and achievements obtained by ergonomists performing their work in a new way.Activity Ergonomics constitutes the theoretical reference for this work. We present the methodological association used to deal with the challenges derived from the pandemic period. We show results from the association of the Ergonomic Analysis of Work Activity (EAWA) with: the “paradigm of training in and by the analysis of work, to and by action”; the Method of Collective Work Analysis (CWA); and the Method of a Workshop of Photography. Those methods also align with the bases of the field of Workers’ Health.We conclude that the strategies adopted were able to conduct a practice in ergonomics that made it possible to achieve its main objectives.

COVID-19 required ergonomists to provide virtual office ergonomics assessments. We responded by developing an assessment process as close to our in-person assessment process as possible to ensure that the quality of the report and recommendations was not comprised. We have found success in using pre-recorded videos and video chat to capture key information about an employee’s home office environment, make adjustments to the employee’s workstation, and provide sound recommendations for improvement.

This study aims to analyze the impact of the 12-hour work shift on the indices of physical and mental health, sleep, and work-family conflict of Brazilian road traffic inspectors. This project was run in a Brazilian highway concession company, based on developing a previous organizational diagnosis focused on Quality of Life at Work, which pointed out potential illness risk-carrying work organization aspects. Among them, the work shift was the target of dissatisfaction among operational workers. The project was carried out in three stages: stage 1: demand identification; stage 2: a survey was carried out with workers, based on the application of the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index; Physical Health Questionnaire; Work-Related Damage Assessment Scale (WRDAS), and Work-Family Conflict Scale (WAFCS); stage 3: results, diagnoses, and actions presentation. The survey counted on the participation of 42 road traffic inspectors in the company, representing a participation rate of 87.5% of the staff holding this position. All the participants were men, mostly aged 28–37 years (57%), with high school education (55%), married (71%), and with children (67%). As for the variables evaluated by the instruments, a high incidence of poor sleep quality (40%) was observed, while most had a good quality of sleep (57%). As for the variables related to physical, mental health, and social work-life relationship, the tools employed did not show negative impacts. The results obtained with this research were used to suggest preventive actions.

When manufacturing a car, robots are used for welding. To check if the welding points comply with the quality requirements, ultrasonic measurements are carried out. In the current situation, there are 29 measurement plans divided over 10 workstations, spread over the welding department. During his entire shift, a worker carries out one measurement plan on a certain workstation and then proceeds to another workstation. It happens that during the same shift a worker returns to a workstation, he visited earlier, to test another measurement plan. To reduce the travel time between workstation, the company decided to concentrate the different measurement plans on 6 workstations. In the future workers will spent more time testing welding points. In the present situation, more than 50% of the workers experienced shoulder and low back problems. To evaluate if the future situation is ergonomically acceptable, Key Indicator Method (KIM) was used. Reduction of workstations lead to a reduction in risk score of body movement (KIM-BM) and awkward body postures (KIM-ABP), but the intensity of the physical load stayed the same. To reduce the intensity of the physical load and the time spent in awkward body postures adjustments of the selected workstations were needed.

The applications of ergonomics have been commonly unidirectional, superficial and with interventions that are not very close to the reality of processes and people’s commitment. The objective of this study is to report on the development and implementation of participatory method aimed at understanding production process, recognizing risks linked to ergonomic factors and developing an action plan in the manufacture of heart valves. Participatory ergonomics can be understood as the involvement of people in the planning and control of a significant amount of their own activities, with sufficient knowledge and power to influence both processes and results in order to achieve desirable objectives. Four methods were developed and applied that allowed the awareness, engagement and effective participation of the different hierarchical and technical levels of the company. The work carried out resulted in 132 items in the action plan, 25% of which were solved even before the end of all analyzes. This advance was possible due to the participatory approach that allowed knowledge, involvement and empowerment of people to implement the required actions.

“Researchers and Practitioners: do we understand each other?” This is a major question for the Human Factors (HF) community. For scientists, it is time to accept structured Practitioner cases as a contribution to science. Practitioners: it is time to share your experiences. One way to share experiences is to publish real-world HF projects. For this paper, seven cases of Control Room (CR) design projects have been reviewed. The focus is not only on the product -the actual control room design result- but also on the roles of stakeholders, HF Consultants, as well as on HF methods and their effectiveness.

It is well recognized that inclusion of Human Factors and Ergonomics (HFE) in early design phase not only reduces overall cost, but also improves operational safety and operator well-being. However, in industry, particularly in manufacturing, majority of the time, active inclusion of HFE principles or involving ergonomics experts happens in much later stages (after reported incidents-reactive approach). Hence, it becomes challenging to control the problem at the root level. The aim of this paper is to re-emphasize the importance of HFE and its inclusion at early design phase, especially when manufacturing facilities are being set up, in order to optimize system safety focusing into human needs. Through real-world case scenarios the relevance of the scope was presented.

A workstation design and implementation project can be poured with infinite decisions. An ergonomic approach to industrial design aimed at improving health and comfort to a large workforce has the potential to materialize many ergonomic concepts and ideas and turn them tangible. A new workstation demand from a multinational company will be the project’s setting, and the opportunity to wield knowledge, gathered and learned, from multiple disciplines; and to learn from our mistakes regarding the project’ process. This paper will illustrate the process from demand to implementation going through the methodology, decisions and challenges.

The aim of this study was to present the results of an ergonomic intervention in a Colombian manufacturing company. The intervention process was carried out in five stages: (1) identify problems in the workstation, (2) ergonomic evaluation of workstations, (3) proposals for ergonomic intervention, (4) evaluation of the proposals, and (5) implementation and follow-up. As a result, several proposals for the physical and organizational redesign were projected. These proposals were elaborated and discussed with the workers involved in the intervened workstations and presented to the company’s management. This work shows the benefits that can be obtained by employing a participatory approach in the ergonomic design of work systems. However, it should be mentioned that the implementation of the proposed redesigns was partial and focused mainly on the physical redesign, since barriers were generated that prevented its implementation. We believe that lessons learned (successes and failures) can serve as a reference for ergonomics practitioners in similar contexts.

The SELR approach was introduced by the U. S. Navy Reserve Force in 2018 to make its associated operations more efficient and responsive to an ever-changing environment. Such an approach is exactly the focus of such programs as 6∑, Lean, Continuous Process Improvement, etc. SELR is defined by the following. Simplify the way business is conducted by streamlining activities, programs, to make them more efficient. Enable personnel to more effectively provide required capabilities and supportive policies. Leverage personnel skills and relationships to further enhance their contributions to the organization. Resource delivering more responsive personnel capabilities to the organization. This approach is applied to ergonomic intervention development and illustrated through case studies.

The mental burden associated with the activity of the control room operator has been the subject of study for ergonomics, which is interested in the strategies used during work situations. Aiming to support traditional training of control room operation activities in an innovative fashion, the Innovation Center in Ergonomics proposed to include immersive technology in a virtual environment as an integral part of the workers’ learning process, aiming to facilitate and enhance responses to stimuli, provide a positive experience in the learning process and avoid possible accidents. For immersion in a 3D virtual environment, HTC VIVEPORT virtual reality glasses and gamification elements were used. For such, a company in the logistics industry was chosen, which manages part of the rail network in Brazil. The control room modeling process was carried out from the understanding of the activity through observation, activity analysis and semi-structured questionnaire. From this, it was possible to identify the operator’s work requirements both in the physical, cognitive and organizational aspects. After modeling the game, the first pilot test allowed the identification of some items to be adjusted for a better understanding of the process. The second pilot test, carried out at the company, showed that most experiences were positive, based on the operators’ perceptions. The development of educational projects using interactive technological resources of virtual simulation, can be very efficient in the work environment, making it easier the perception of risk and accelerating the knowledge curve of the control room operators.

In industry, to enhance the operating conditions of companies, development measures are required for work, work environment, technologies and products. Development of the work affects the quality of working life, which is one of the factors that make it possible to experience well-being at work. The goal of ergonomics is to organize the work and the working environment so that the changes benefit both the company and its staff. Thus, it is important to look at ergonomic work and work-environment development at the same time as productivity and well-being at work. This study examines an ergonomics development process in one manufacturing plant in Finland. The aim of this process was to improve productivity and promote well-being at work by improving production capacity, reducing non-productive work, and optimizing material flows. The project was facilitated through a participatory ergonomics process. As a result of the process, the plant’s total productivity increased by 5 percent, meaning an annual increase of 250 products in manufacturing capacity. The process also contributed significantly to health and safety, with decreased sick leave and occupational accidents and with increased perceptions of well-being at work. The company’s total cost saving in two years was €210,700.

Research and development of new pharmaceutical products are very knowledge-intensive activities, which require an efficient quality assurance process. The trade-off between quality and time to market is increasingly critical, which generates stress in the face of the risks associated with delays in quality assurance or even longer delays if the regulatory agency rejects the proposal. To help resolve this dilemma in a company involved in the research, production and marketing of biopharmaceuticals, we assessed the knowledge intensity required for quality assurance. This was achieved by breaking down the quality assurance process into tasks and evaluating each of these tasks according to the dimensions of required qualification, autonomy, innovation, information intensity, interdependencies and decision variability. The most demanding dimensions founded in the study were information intensity and innovation, while level of autonomy was low. A content analysis technique was incorporated to uncover the knowledge present in the many documents of past technical reviews. This revealed the main sources of delays in past quality assurance processes and support findings proactive decisions. The working system was redesigned to facilitate the harmonisation of criteria and the presentation of the scientific basis of the results, thereby strengthening interdependencies, information analysis, innovation capacity and qualification.

Several manual lifting evaluation tools are currently available to analyze mono-task jobs, yet most jobs involve multiple varying tasks. Therefore, a summation of mono-task analysis may not be an accurate representation of the degree of compressive forces and stress placed on the spine. The Lifting Fatigue Failure Tool (LiFFT) has been adapted from the fatigue failure theory (FFT) and is capable of both mono-task and cumulative task evaluation. The FFT details cumulative damage of the applied stress and the number of cycles to failure, therefore calculating a representative spinal compression is important in applying the corresponding limits. The original Gallagher method only requires three variables to use the LiFFT: the weight of the load, horizontal distance, and repetition per day. Other methods of applying the tool have emerged to achieve a more accurate calculation of spinal compression. The Potvin method includes a vertical height of the load and the 3DSSPP method uses digital human modeling (DHM) to calculate spine compression. The objective of this study was to compare the different methods of calculating spine compression for entry into the LiFFT to determine the variance in outputs. The results showed that the Gallagher method is best suited for lifts that do not require significant vertical postural changes whereas the Potvin and 3DSSPP methods are able to assess more complex lifts. Although DHM is the gold standard, the Potvin method is preferred for practitioners due to its ease of use. Overall, the LiFFT is a practical, effective, and practitioner friendly tool capable of predicting the risk about the low back in simple and complex manual lift evaluations.

Serious games have grown significantly in popularity, but proving their scientific validity through research studies is a common hurdle for researchers and game developers. To scale up capacity to collaborate with different groups of researchers, Centivizer Inc. (a University of Toronto spinoff company) has employed a user-centered design process to design a BrainTagger Research Platform (BRP) that will largely automate the development process of its customizable serious games for cognitive assessment. This new development will increase the capacity to gather research data needed to improve game mechanisms and demonstrate game validity.

Cardiac function (measured by heart rate and heart rate variability) have been investigated as objective measures of pilot workload, by comparing cardiac function between different flight manoeuvres. However, no study has investigated whether cardiac function measures can detect workload changes between manoeuvres of the same type, but different levels of difficulty (e.g., normal turns and steep turns). Commercial pilots (n = 14) flew a short scenario in a narrow-body jet simulator, which consisted of a normal turn, simple stall, steep turn, and complex stall. Heart rate, heart rate variability, NASA-TLX and flight path deviations were recorded. We found that heart rate and heart rate variability patterns were stable between participants and show clear differences between manoeuvre types. However, we did not observe any change due to manoeuvre difficulty. NASA-TLX ratings highlighted differences between manoeuvre difficulty, but not manoeuvre type. Our findings suggest that a combination of cardiac measures and subjective measures is best to understand workload. Additional research is required to establish guidelines for use of cardiac function as an indicator of workload.

Fatigue is an important factor in aviation accidents and incidents. Since fatigue cannot always be prevented, it needs to be detected in real time so that countermeasures can be taken. This study researches whether vocal changes (in vocal intensity and fundamental frequency) can be used as a measure for fatigue in an operational aviation setting. Sixteen participants were measured two times. Before the first test moment, they were asked to sleep eight hours or more and before the second test moment six hours or less. During each test moment, they performed a PVT, filled in the KSS, and did two speech tasks. One task was aimed at free speech and one task was aimed at procedural speech. Pre-processing included segmentation of the speech into words and extracting fundamental frequency (f0) and intensity values. An overall mean of both variables was calculated for both free and procedural speech. Speech, PVT reaction time, PVT lapses and KSS scores were analyzed in SPSS using Paired Samples t-Tests and Wilcoxon Signed Ranks Tests. Participants slept significantly less during the night before the second test moment and scored significantly higher on the KSS. For the PVT, no differences in both reaction time and lapses were found. No significant differences in average f0 and intensity for both free and procedural speech were found either. The results did not show a significant relationship between fundamental frequency, intensity and fatigue. Further research is needed to examine if vocal changes can be used as a reliable fatigue measure.

The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), which supervises the activities and provision of air services, as well as Brazil which is a signatory, issued a formal recommendation pointing fatigue as a criterion of high impact on aeronautical activities and in maintaining the safety of aircraft operations. The proposing management of human fatigue following scientific principles in two approaches: one prescriptive, which stipulates regulatory prescriptive limits, and the other, not mandatory, for data monitoring through a system called FRMS (Fatigue Risk Management System). This article is a bibliometric study on the scientific production in fatigue applied to air traffic control. A bibliometric survey was conducted on three databases “SCOPUS”, “ENGINEERING VILLAGE”, and “WEB OF SCIENCE”, resulting in only 7 documents. Though a survey in other web sources, books, and international regulations was conducted, resulting in 13 methods. Among the subjective methods are: Sleep diaries; Visual Analogue Scale to Evaluate Fatigue Severity (VAS-F); Karolinska Sleepiness Scale (KSS); Samn Perelli Scale (SPS); Epiworth Sleepiness Scale; Stanford Sleepiness Scale. By the results, subjective methods have advantages, such as speed and ease of administration, application on paper or computer, the minimal interruption to the crew, many studies have used SPS and KSS and provide data for comparison. And, disadvantages, such as: relatively easy to cheat, may not have face validity. Until this moment, prescription limits have been adopted in Brazil following regulations, but the fatigue assessment and monitoring phase are still in the study and implementation strategy phase.

Regional turboprop passenger aircraft are more fuel efficient than equivalent regional turbofan jets. Aerodynamic interaction between the propeller and the aircraft wing and body cause higher noise and vibration in the turboprop cabin than in jets; to improve the passenger cabin of turboprops, an improve comfort model is required to enable design optimization. Three age-stratified focus groups were conducted with the aim of eliciting passenger priorities for comfort in aircraft cabins. Participants discussed view elicited in response to images of different aircraft, and aircraft interiors. Transcriptions of the focus groups were coded using NVivo and the most common thematic areas identified for each age group. Physical comfort (space and seat design), the physical environment (noise, air quality, vibration, thermal), safety and hygiene were the most commonly coded thematic areas. The oldest group (50–70) rated the thermal environment as more important than younger groups. Turboprop aircraft were considered noisy and to be less comfortable than turbojets. However, noise and vibration were considered to be outside of the passenger’s control and therefore accepted.

Pilots must manage their workload correctly to achieve a safe operation. However, few studies have attempted to estimate a pilot’s workload in real-time, and there are no established methods of doing so. To provide more direct support for a pilot’s workload management, we attempted to construct a model that estimates the pilot’s future workload using data on various flight-related parameters that can be acquired in real-time. Participants conducted simulated flights using the flight simulator. Based on the data obtained from these simulations, we used machine learning to construct a model to estimate the workload level 30 s later on a five-point scale. This model correctly estimated 32.0% of the test data, and in 72.3% of the test data, the deviation between the subjective value and the estimated value was within one workload level. We implemented a system that presents the estimated workload level to the pilot in real-time, and from the review of a license holder who conducted simulated flights using the proposed system, we confirmed that the system is effective for workload management.

Single pilot operations (SPO) for airliners represent the evolutionary cockpit crew development for future aviation. The present work replies to the call for a human-centered research agenda by providing a systematic review of the literature for one of the most-widely researched concepts of SPO: the dedicated-support concept, which is also known as harbor pilot concept. Accordingly, a remote-copilot supports a single-piloted aircraft to alleviate high workload that can occur during nominal, off-nominal, and emergency situations. All studies of a recently published systematic literature review on SPO [1] were coded according to the categories of type of article, concept of operation, and method. The studies on the concept under analysis were systematically reviewed further to evaluate their contribution to its current state in human-centered design according to ISO 9241-210. The theoretical foundations of such SPO are elaborated in detail in modeling studies and accident analyses whereas empirical evaluation of design solutions has been started only in a few studies. Nonetheless, workload seems consistently be able to be distributed in a comparable range as in nowadays flight operations. In the end, the dedicated support concept of SPO is at early stages in the human-centered design process.

By employing quantifiable and measurable ways to assess the role of various uncertainties associated with the mental workload (MWL) and human capacity factor (HCF), and treating a human-in-the-loop (HITL) as a part, often the most critical part, of the complex man-instrumentation-equipment-vehicle-environment system, one can improve dramatically the human’s performance, achieve the best human-system-integration (HSI) possible and predict, minimize and, when appropriate, even specify the probability of the occurrence of a casualty. The ultimate objective of the analysis is to develop effective predictive modelling techniques that would enable quantifying, on the probabilistic basis, the role of the human factor (HF) and improve his/hers HCF, so that he/she would be able to successfully cope, when necessary, with an elevated MWL and minimize the probability of an accident, when reliability of instrumentation and human performance contribute jointly to the outcome of an HSI related mission or an off-normal situation. It is concluded that the suggested MWL/HCF models and their possible modifications and generalizations can be helpful when developing guidelines for personnel selection and training; and/or when there is a need to decide, if the existing methods of reliability and ergonomics engineering are adequate in various off-normal situations, and if not, whether additional and/or more advanced and, perhaps, more expensive equipment or instrumentation should be developed, tested and installed to meet the safety requirements.

Aircraft seat is rated as the most unsatisfying aspect of flying; understanding the main factors impacting on passenger’s evaluations can provide a concrete opportunity for airlines to improve seat comfort and thus enhance passenger satisfaction and loyalty. Although there is a great deal of interest, the research on effective assessment strategies for subjective comfort is still underdeveloped. In this study a model-based approach for the analysis of subjective comfort data is suggested. The model adopted can be interpreted as a parametric version of the psychological process generating comfort ratings. The proposed approach is exploited through a case study concerning comfort assessment of aircraft seats designed for regional flights.

Staggered seats might be a solution for a V-shaped aircraft (the Flying V). The cabin longitudinal axis of this airplane has a 26° angle with respect to the direction of flight. When seats are positioned in the direction of flight, they consequently have an angle to the cabin and become staggered. It is unknown whether the comfort of this staggered seat is appreciated. In this study, 117 participants tested the comfort and the privacy experience in this staggered seat compared with a regular aircraft seat. The experiment showed that both comfort and privacy were significantly better in the staggered seats. However, the analysis is based on short-term evaluations, which means that long-term effects still need to be studied and also the effects of groups travelling together need to be investigated.

Being one of the main tools used in agriculture, tractors still cause physical fatigue in users and demand high cognitive processes. The main goal of this project is to detect interaction problems between the user and a chosen tractor cabin with the objective of applying ergonomic adjustments in order to improve the tractor’s usability. As a result of applying ergonomic intervention strategies combined with design methods, a conceptual redesign for the main elements form the interior of a tractor cab: the front panel, the levers dashboard, and the seat was proposed.

It is well documented that farming is a high-risk industry in terms of fatalities and injuries, and with numerous risk factors associated with operating the farm. It has also proved difficult to find evidence for the effectiveness of interventions. Moreover, farming is in transition, with ongoing technological transformations as well as becoming increasingly more globalized. Thus, new perspectives that allow for more systemic understandings in the management and promotion of occupational health and safety (OHS) are needed. Our main objective is to present an integrated theoretical understanding of the farm as an enterprise and an integrated element in the political-economic agricultural system. The main question is how can farmers organize and manage the farm, in order to simultaneously improve efficiency, quality and OHS based on systemic models for OHS and a systemic understanding of the political-economical system of Norwegian agriculture? The framework is adapted to the Norwegian agricultural context, with ongoing transformations both technologically and organizationally, including visions and plans set by Norwegian agriculture itself. However, the framework can be applied irrespective of national context.

Few studies in the South American context, and none in Chile, have been carried out in bovine slaughterhouse workers. However, the little evidence available mainly in North America and Europe is consistent with our findings, regarding the demands at the lumbar level, upper limbs and physical workload and the determinants of work activity. Objectives: Identify and describe the risk factors for WMSDs associated with Manual Handling of meat products, as well as other risk, the demand for physical work and biomechanical load, in truck loading and unloading activities in a slaughterhouse company and the determinants of work activity for the intervention. Material and Methods: Case study, observational descriptive cross-sectional design with mixed approach, considers the analysis of lumbar force moment, kinematic analysis and measurement of cardic frequency to determine the physiological workload, verbalizations, perceptions and observation of work activity Results: The Manual Handling of meat products exceeds 3400N of disc compression in L4-L5 and L5-S1 level, the % HRR is over 40% and the activity is determined by the type of working day, the organization of the distribution and the lack of means support mechanics for loading and unloading trucks. Conclusions. Manual Handling tasks in this industry are physically very demanding and improving these working conditions represents a major challenge for prevention and ergonomics.

The traditional irrigation system called Foggara is still used at a large scale in the western deserts of Algeria. In order for the Foggaras to survive, they must be maintained. Maintaining Foggara needs a lot of human work along the year, particularly in hot months when the water becomes vital for humans, animals and the palmary as a whole. Foggara maintenance work is usually done underground in wells, tunnels and shafts (confined areas).This research aims to develop an ergonomics assessment tool for working postures in confined underground spaces. Research sample consisted of 13 male subjects working in the Foggara maintenance for many years. The development of the tool has gone through various stages.Researchers were able to build the tool (UPAT) that fits the situation being researched. UPAT has been proven to be valid and reliable, not to be used in this research only, but to be accessible to other researchers to use in similar situations.The use of the tool in the field, showed that Foggara maintenance workers, whether working in wells or in tunnel, adopt different working postures (standing, stooping, squatting, kneeling and crawling), for different time periods. The full picture of what is happening in the maintenance of the Foggara can be extrapolated from these partial results. Therefore, it can be comprehended that this type of work is hazardous, tiring and exhausting as it involves a lot of physical, mental and psychological stress.

The Foggara system consists of two main parts: The water obtaining part and the water distribution part. One of the main figures in the management of the Foggara system is the water measurer (Al-Kayyal). Among his work activities are monitoring the amount of water that flows from Foggara, and measuring the share of each beneficiary. Al-Kayyal should have basic knowledge of math, keep accurate records, be honest, intelligent, and have religious values.Nowadays, most of Al-Kayyals are elderly. They are unable to fulfill the demands of water measuring job. As a result, many Foggaras have serious problems to stay functioning in the absence of Al-Kayyal. The aim of the present research is to introduce a training program to train interested young people to do the job of Al-Kayyal.Researchers chose randomly five students who expressed a desire to learn the profession of Al-Kayyal. They are of approximate age (mean age was 22.40 and standard deviation of 1.14 years). The data collection tool was the ergonomics intervention program. The development of the program has gone through four successive phases: preparation, implementation, evaluation and follow-up phases. It consisted of (8) sessions as follows: an introductory session, (5) working sessions to cover both the theoretical and practical parts of the program, a closing session for evaluating the program and a final session for follow-up.The evaluation of the program using both the quantitative (experimental), and the qualitative (Kirkpatrick model) approaches, and the follow-up test have confirmed the program effectiveness.

IoT is a new trending technology that enables digitalization and modernization in every field. Things connected to the cloud makes the entire system smart. We have using the IoT system in every way of life: Smart city, Smart homes, Smart supply chain, Smart retail, Wearables, Connecting health, Smart grid, Smart industry, and smart farming. In the current scenario, the rapid population growth has increased the production demand and consequently, the pressure among farmers also increased to satisfy customer demand. Certainly, the automation and advanced machinery may lead to speed up the farm activities to increase productivity. The most important part of the IoT system is using sensor devices that collect cloud-based data which is interpreted to get the desired analysis. For the smart agriculture system, sensors play a major role collect data to measure NPK values, plant health, detect diseases and other soil properties. This paper is focused on the exploratory study in the agriculture sector to enhance smart technologies. This future research plan delivers a sample scope for future interdisciplinary science on smart farming, digital agriculture, precision farming, and agriculture 4.0.

This study identifies the musculoskeletal symptoms of agricultural workers, specifically lettuce farmers. Data was collected in a lettuce farm in Cavite, Philippines, questionnaire, and direct observation was used. There are 50 participants in the study, including twenty-two greenhouse workers, eleven soil mixing workers, nine nursery workers, and eight fermentation workers. Prevalence of musculoskeletal symptoms in the shoulder (80%), lower back (70%), neck (64%), and hand/wrist (73%) is high for all occupation groups. 92% of the participants were reported to have work interference due to musculoskeletal symptoms. The severity of musculoskeletal symptoms was typical for the lower back, upper back, shoulder, and neck. The overall mean of the farmer’s Rapid Upper Limb Assessment (RULA) score was 6.4, which corresponds to RULA action level 3, highlighting that the current working posture of farmers must have a further investigation or needed change soon. Association between socio- demographic results and musculoskeletal symptoms are identified using logistic regression analyses.

Introduction: pineapple cultivation presents a series of risk factors that pose a serious challenge to the design of personal protective equipment (PPE) appropriate to the operations involved in the production process. Objective: to outline attributes and technical specifications for the design of a set of PPE that are efficient in controlling risk factors, and reach a level of comfort that does not generate rejections of use. Methods: general and systematic observations were made of the work performed by eight workers during the pineapple harvest stage, besides the application of semi-structured interviews and a questionnaire. The QFD (Quality Function Deployment) method was partially used to delineate the attributes and technical specifications of the PPE, based on the information obtained by the work analysis. Results: the deployment table and quality matrix for the development of PPE for pineapple harvesting operation were constructed. The main attributes pointed out by the workers were that the PPE does not cause thermal discomfort or disrupt the execution of the task. Conclusion: The methodological proposal presented in this paper is promising as a basis for the design and development of personal protective equipment suitable for agricultural work.

This research aimed to analyze leg volume changes in a florists population—a cross-sectional study where lower leg circumference measurements were taken at the beginning and end of an 8-h workday. Seventeen florists (8 women, 9 men) voluntarily participated; their legs’ circumference was measured in 5 segments every 4 cm (20 cm in total) with the Gulick II tape measure to calculate the lower legs’ volume. The average volume in both legs increased (right leg 2.12%, left leg 1.83%), with significant changes in both the right (Z = −3.337, p = 0.001) and left (Z = −2.769, p = 0.006) legs between the start and end of the workday. The left leg volume increased more in women (women: 11.63, men: 6.67, p = 0.043). This research shows a significant increase in leg volume in a population of Colombian flower growers during an 8-h workday. These findings indicate the need to pay more attention to standing work’s effects to take preventive actions to improve their working conditions from an ergonomic perspective.

There is a lack of information regarding the ergonomic principles that should be followed when designing the interior of a tractor cabin in order for it to be comfortable, usable and safe. This design must take into account operator’s characteristics such as his posture when driving, the forces that need to be applicated when manipulating the instruments panel or the cognitive processes implied when the operator is interacting with the interior of the cabin. Since an ergonomic cabin can not only ensure the safety of the driver, but it can also help him/her to be more efficient in their daily activities, the objective of this report is to propose ergonomic interventions through literature research, suggesting a conceptual design that could improve the usability of a tractor cabin. Some decision-making methodologies such as Reverse brainstorming and Lightning Decision Jam are applied along the design process in order to evaluate and delimit the attributes of the new design that could best impact the positive experience of the tractor’s operators.

Situation awareness (SA) is a cognitive safety-critical skill, consisting of three levels – perception, comprehension, and anticipation. SA lapses have been associated with many incidents and accidents across high-risk industries. Stress and fatigue can negatively impact SA, leading to some of these lapses. More recently, the importance of SA has also been acknowledged in agriculture, the most dangerous industry in Ireland and the United Kingdom by injury and fatality rate. The current study aimed to explore SA lapses and the impact of stress and fatigue on SA in agriculture. Fifteen Irish and British farmers were interviewed using the critical incident technique followed by general questions on stress and fatigue in farming. In the critical incident section, interviewees were asked to verbally recall a recent negative farming experience, an error that occurred, or adverse conditions which they had to manage on the farm while feeling tired or stressed. Additional questions were asked to uncover implicit knowledge on SA lapses, stress, and fatigue. Interviews were analysed using qualitative content analysis. SA lapses were reportedly involved in all accidents and incidents. Many occurred at the perception level, as a failure to monitor or observe data, usually because of attentional narrowing. Several lapses also occurred at the comprehension level as an incomplete or an inaccurate mental model, usually in the context of a recent change in equipment or machinery. Stress and fatigue had a negative impact on SA through cognitive impairments. A twofold strategy is suggested, focused on strengthening SA and managing stress and fatigue.

Considered to be the most used machinery in agriculture and forestry, and being the interior of a tractor’s cabin the place where the user gets involved and develops most of the tasks every day at this industry, the design and construction of standard tractors cabins should contemplate ergonomic strategies and design principles in order to guaranty an improvement of the user’s work efficiency, comfort, health, and safety based on tractor requirements standardized by SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers), ISO and safety range tests. The purpose of this job is to present a new proposal for the interior of a tractor’s cabin based on a conceptual design, as a result of combining the findings of a literature review with design and decision-making methodologies, providing visual, biomechanics, posture, and tool simplification refinements in the frontal panel, multipurpose accessories’ area, lever system, and the seat.

Given the importance of how the built environment influences the well-being and health of people in a positive or negative way, in addition to the need of expanding this field of knowledge, this work teaches the model of “Conscious Ergonomics” in Architecture, which proposes a holistic and systemic view to contribute to integral well-being. Formed by the trinomial energy, matter, and form as articulators of perceived and unperceived information. For the above, a mixed method is developed comprising the state of scientific art and various empirical experiences. As results, the most representative parameters of each dimension –the built environment and the human being– are defined, which, depending on their level of relationships, respond better to this holistic vision. It is seen as an opportunity to strengthen the formal, energetic, and biophilic aspects, the exploration in commercial and industrial contexts, and the link with more objective studies on the human being and its biological responses. Finally, this research seeks to codify knowledge for new evidence-based architectural design strategies.

Ergonomics must be integrated into a construction safety program to reduce the risks associated with musculoskeletal disorders. There is little guidance available on how ergonomics may be added to safety programs nor on the effectiveness of the additional ergonomic activities to reducing risks related to ergonomic exposures over time. This study illustrated the programmatic change process of adapting ergonomic activities into an existing safety management system of a single contractor, and the change in leading indicators, worker awareness, and observed behaviors over a 1.5 year period after delivering the revised program. The results showed improvement in worker awareness and in the leading indicators for attendance and number of trainings, discussion about ergonomics in safety meetings, and the frequency of identification of ergonomic hazards and controls on worker assessments and on management audits. These leading indicators provided information at interim points in time to indicate the need for additional programmatic changes. During this study, there was little change in observed behaviors. Integrating ergonomics into safety programs requires time and resources and change in work exposures occurs gradually over time.

Falls are a common cause of fatal and nonfatal occupational injuries in the U.S. construction industry, causing 5,701 deaths among construction workers from 2003 to 2018. The purpose of this study is to examine trends of fatal falls in the construction industry and analyze patterns of fatalities from falls to a lower level among U.S. construction workers from 2011 to 2019. Two large national datasets in the U.S. were analyzed, including the Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries and the Current Population Survey. Findings indicated that the number of fatal injuries in construction continued to increase, and reached 1,102 deaths in 2019, the highest level since 2011. The number of fatalities among Hispanic construction workers were particularly concerning, outpacing their employment growth during this period. Falls to a lower level were largely responsible for the increase in construction fatalities in 2019, as both the number and rate of fatal falls to a lower level increased in 2019 after reductions in 2017 and 2018. To prevent fatal fall injuries in construction, continued and enhanced fall protection efforts are needed.

Personnel safety problems on the construction sites are still serious concerns, which need to be particularly emphasized and mitigated. In recent times, safety culture and safety citizenship behavior are considered influential to promote the safety of construction personnel. However, no study has focused on analyzing the correlation between safety culture and safety citizenship behavior of construction workers in a quantitative way, and the lack of relevant research can cause obstacles to the safety development of the construction industry. Therefore, this study was carried out to examine the correlation between safety culture and safety citizenship behavior among construction personnel working onsite by conducting a questionnaire survey with 140 respondents in China. The data were analyzed using statistical approaches, such as Pearson correlation analysis, structural equation modeling, and linear regression modeling, that the underlying mechanisms of the influence were verified. The findings provide both practical and theoretical contributions to the industrial field, which highlight the importance of effective relationship exchange and working culture promotion among organizations.

The construction industry has one of the highest frequencies of sick leaves caused both by accidents and by work-related diseases. Casting is one example of a demanding task. After casting with regular concrete, the concrete mass needs to be manually vibrated to reduce the air and to fill the formwork properly. During this activity workers are exposed to forward bent postures, repeated heavy lifts, noise and hand-arm vibrations. Self-compacting concrete (SCC) is a fluid concrete and as such, does not need vibrations. In addition, one may expect economic benefits when using SCC. Despite the advantages of SCC its market share in Sweden is about 10%, and lower than in a neighboring country. There is yet no explanation for the low usage of SCC in Sweden. The aim of this study is to reach a deeper understanding of construction engineers’ attitudes and knowledge concerning work health and work environments during concrete casting, and about SCC and its usage. One-hour-interviews were conducted with 6 male construction engineers. The results indicated that respondents were familiar with risks for accidents, but much less familiar with risks for musculoskeletal disorders, and with risks from hand-arm vibrations. The study also revealed low level of knowledge about SCC and other new methods and materials that could improve and streamline processes at a construction site.

In Brazil, covid-19 reached 5 million infected people, with more than 200 thousand deaths. It is the 3rd country in the global contamination ranking, behind only the USA and India. Studies have shown that the covid-19 pandemic lethally reached the poorest in the world, those who could not stop working during the social isolation. In Brazil, Valente (2020) published that 20% poorest had twice the chance to be infected than the 20% of the wealthiest people. The study relates living conditions in popular homes during the pandemic and focuses on working-from-home and occupants’ new needs from an ergonomics perspective. This research evaluated the ergonomic conditions in a social house dwelling in Brazil. Its users are a young couple and one child, who remained in social isolation for 03 months - from March to June 2020. The analysis included the environmental conditions as comfort, accessibility, habitability, functionality, privacy, and ergonomics. Results highlighted the provisional workstations inside minimal housing and the problems of sharing these workstations between the different users’ profiles. Interior dimensions and furniture were not prepared to accommodate working activities for such a long time and simultaneously for the whole family.

Historical H&S challenges, in terms of a range of issues, continue to be experienced, namely not following procedures, unsafe acts, unsafe conditions, non-compliance, untrained workers undertaking work, commencement of activities without conducting hazard identification and risk assessment (HIRA), data gathering and recording, monitoring, and ultimately the experience of injuries. Given the abovementioned, and the advent of Industry 4.0, an exploratory quantitative study, which entailed a self-administered questionnaire, was conducted among registered professional (Pr) Construction H&S Agents to determine the H&S challenges experienced, H&S performance, and the potential of Industry 4.0 to contribute to resolving the former cited challenges. The findings indicate that a range of historical challenges, which negatively impact H&S performance, continue to be experienced in construction, and that Industry 4.0 technologies can contribute to resolving the H&S challenges experienced in construction. Conclusions include that Industry 4.0 technologies have the potential to contribute to resolving the H&S challenges experienced in construction. Recommendations include: employer associations, professional associations, and statutory councils should raise the level of awareness relative to the potential implementation of Industry 4.0 relative to H&S in construction; case studies should be documented and shared; tertiary construction management education programmes should integrate Industry 4.0 into all possible modules, especially H&S-related modules, and continuing professional development (CPD) H&S should address Industry 4.0.

Cyber-Physical Production Systems (CPPS) are receiving a lot of attention in the context of the fourth industrial revolution, especially in terms of complex architectures for data exchange among intelligent machines. However, the present elaboration is rather based on the question of what support such systems can provide for the exchange and appropriation of knowledge-intensive human practices in industrial surroundings. This paper presents the method and conceptual foundations of an Augmented Reality (AR) and sensor technology based CPPS for manual set-up processes on modern production machines. In the present context, both the recording of physical movements and the representation of local knowledge are potentially relevant. The basis is formed by design implications identified in the course of an extensive ethnographic study through the implementation of which a new methodological approach to the capture and transfer of (technical) knowledge embedded in embodied actions could be realized.

Fast and efficient learning is a necessary requirement for modern workplaces in response to dynamic markets and constantly changing work practices. Sharing knowledge and experience is an essential part of this. Computer technologies, such as Cyber-Physical Production Systems (CPPS) built according to the concept of Augmented Reality (AR), are used in this context. In a research project, such a system was developed to support machine setters for set-up processes on industrial machines. This paper evaluates the tool with respect to selected parameters relevant to strain and performance. The findings provide information on the extent to which an AR-based tool can be used in an industrial context from a physiological and psychological perspective as well as from an entrepreneurial point of view.

Productively and ergonomically designed work is a key factor for the competitiveness of industrial companies. MTM-HWD® is a method to describe human work that allows an integrated analysis of both productive and ergonomic aspects. Although it considers these aspects in a single process, the method still requires a considerable amount of effort [1]. One possibility to reduce this effort is the utilization of digital human motion data from human simulation tools.This paper presents an approach that can use this motion data to derive a HWD analysis in a semi-automated way. The implementation of this approach is illustrated using the simulation software imk ema [2].

In paced assembly lines, cognitive processing is required from assembly workers to perform correct and timely assembly of complex products with varying specifications. This interview study involving 75 industrial assemblers, design- and manufacturing engineers explores how assemblers’ cognitive performance is influenced by multiple factors within the contexts of product design, production setup and assembly. Our results indicate that both positive and negative effects on assemblers’ cognitive performance can stem from task design, timing, physical loading demands, extrinsic motivation factors, teamwork and the assembly “interface” design. Among design- and manufacturing engineers, two mindsets emerged: (i) a product-centred mindset relying on assemblers having sufficient experience, knowledge, and assembly instructions, (ii) an assembler-focused mindset characterised by an iterative and collaborative development process to ensure easy-to-assemble solutions, and avoid errors, delays and costly re-work. Despite organizational differences and conditions between the companies that took part in the study, the results are largely consistent.

Occupational Ergonomics related aspects have a significant impact in the manufacturing world, from Musculoskeletal Disorders (MSD) to quality issues; it is an important knowledge domain in manufacturing organizations.This paper presents a new decision tree called Ergo4All™ aimed at giving ergonomic guidance to manufacturing engineers while designing workstations in 3D. Combined with the Smart Posturing Engine™ (SPE™) technology, which generates posture automatically in a 3D environment, Ergo4All™ analyses the potential risk of developing MSD by workers. It then provides guidance to the user on changes to the workstation that will lower the ergonomics risks.The goal of this decision tree is to provide simple ergonomic guidance to engineer that do not have training in ergonomics.The Ergo4All™ decision tree was designed as a rapid assessment tool for people designing workstations early in the virtual design process. This by no means replaces the expertise of a certified ergonomist.

A competence center for work and AI, funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research for five years, is intended to strengthen the humane use of AI applications in manufacturing. The cooperation between specialists from human factors and ergonomics (HFE), AI development and engineering is the core of the competence center. In this paper its main research topics and structure is presented and illustrated using the example of the development of manufacturing assistance systems .

In the present day, manufacturing companies are constantly facing new challenges, mostly deriving from the possibilities offered to industry by the fourth industrial revolution. New capabilities and services are available for customers and companies by advanced technologies and interconnections, changing the way we live, work and relate to one another. A promising example of Human-Robot Collaboration is the exoskeleton, a wearable device that interacts with the users to reduce the strain associated to the repetitive tasks present in the manufacturing environment. Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) (The company merged with PSA creating Stellantis N.V. in January 2021. Abstract was submitted at an earlier stage.), a multinational corporation operating into four (4) Regions: EMEA, North America, LATAM and APAC, had the opportunity to benchmark and test exoskeletons in the different Regions. The focus of the present paper is to present a collaborative approach within Regions on exoskeletons application and feasibility studies including experimental tests, key performance indicators and legal requirements. Main aspects and results are presented together with the open questions.

The goal of the current study was to mitigate employee discomfort and fatigue and improve emotional well-being through a job-specific stretching program at a local manufacturing facility. While preliminary analyses suggest that this program may have the desired impact on flexibility, fitness, and affect, it is only as good as its buy-in from the company. While the company seemed eager to adopt such a program at the initial planning-stages, large-scale implementation strategies were met with resistance. Some departments encouraged their employees to stretch together before starting the shift but did not promote the mid-shift or post-shift stretching to the same degree, while other departments were not as supportive of the program and did not complete any stretches as a group. Some employees in these departments noted that they wanted to take part independently. However, while completing the stretches on their own at their workstation, nearby coworkers led them to feel self-conscious. Employees noted that they would try to find an isolated place to do their stretches but that they were frequently “caught,” which led them to stop participating. Further investigation is underway after having addressed some of the identified issues with the initial launch. Based on the researchers’ feedback, the company has established a wellness committee to support engagement and lead group stretches. The safety and management teams have been actively engaged with promoting the program, leading to overall positive feelings towards the relaunch on the part of employees. Further data collection is underway.

In recent years, important changes in work have appeared in the industrial landscape. However, there is still work to be done, and we need to go further and faster, which is why we, at Safran Landing Systems, thought of combining ergonomics with continuous improvement, or Lean management. So through the One Safran Lean workshops, Ergonomics has shown that it is possible to transform this “top-down” approach into a participative “bottom-up” approach built jointly with operators, taking into account the actual work, to adapt prescriptions and better control the WAI (work as imagine)/WAD (work as done) gap. This approach, focused on the workers and the work as they actually do it, allowed us to take into account their professional culture, to collectively build their own rules regarding health and safety issues, while contributing to the overall performance of the work unit.

Assembly workers within for example the motor vehicle industry, are subject to physically demanding work tasks. One common type of load exposure for assembly workers, are reaction forces generated by tightening tools, such as nutrunners. The tool users counteract these forces through repetitive muscular force exertions, which in the long-term can pave the way for musculoskeletal disorders. As with other well-acknowledged load exposures commonly occurring in the assembly line environment, such as vibrations from tools, or adverse postures, reaction loads generated by nutrunners need thoroughly founded recommendations regarding acceptable exposure, in order to enable sustainable physical workloads for the tool users. The aim of this study was to lay a foundation for such recommendations. An experimental study was carried out in a simulated workstation, where assembly workers performed tightenings with an electric angle nutrunner, at different tool settings, joint stiffnesses and work-paces. Through a psychophysical approach, the participants judged the maximum amount of reaction load exposure which they perceived would enable a sustainable workload. The highly dynamic tool setting resulted in the highest chosen tightening torque levels, i.e. 35.0 and 37.7 Nm at five and eight tightenings per minute, respectively. This corresponded to a peak reaction force exposure of 71.6 and 69.8 N, respectively. Despite the statistically significant differences in impulse between the highly dynamic tightenings on hard joints and continuous drive tightenings on medium joints, no statistically significant difference between the chosen torque levels was found, suggesting that additional factors may contribute to the experience of reaction load exposure.

The objective of the European “machinery” directive (EC/2006/42 directive) is the free movement of products in the 27 member states of the European Union, provided that they comply with the minimum health and safety requirements for the users of these machines. All equipment imported into Europe must meet these requirements.Ergonomics and human factors are at the core this directive, as an increasing number of design and operation factors are considered. For instance, a condition to satisfy is the “reasonably forecastable misuse”. Once it is explained, it becomes very clear, and it is a condition for any product to be sold in Europe.Ergonomics 4.0 have many strong points to valorize about this directive, and all machine builder has to deal with this directive in order to be successful in Europe. The industrial and commercial implications of the Directive are therefore, increasingly meaningful for both manufacturers within and outside Europe.This paper summaries the workshop on the EU machinery directive organized by FEES representatives in the frame of the IEA 2021 Congress.

Slaughterhouse workers are often exposed to many biomechanical risk factors that contribute to the development of upper-limb work-related musculoskeletal disorders (UL-WMSD). Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the risks in relation to repetitive movements of the upper limbs in a poultry slaughterhouse, as well as analyze the effects of a reduced work pace on the risk levels. The study was conducted in a slaughterhouse with 1,500 workers, who were divided into two shifts, where 150,000 chickens were slaughtered daily. The OCRA checklist was implemented to assess 10% of the total workforce. The Student t-test was applied to examine the difference between the risks of both sides of the body (p ≤ 0.05). The 14 analyzed work tasks were from the sectors: cutting (8), packing (5) and reception (1). The workers performed 72.8 ± 15.3 actions per minute (10/10 points on the OCRA scale). The average score of the OCRA checklist was 23.4 ± 4.4 (high risk). The scores for the right upper limb (23.1 ± 4.8 - high risk) were not significantly different (p = 0.175) than the left (21.8 ± 5.2 - moderate risk). Considering the five risk categories of the OCRA method, 10 tasks were deemed high risk (71%) and 4 presented moderate risk (29%). By conducting simulations, it was possible to reduce the risk to a very low level in 13 of the 14 tasks by only decreasing the work pace (−56.9 ± 10.4%). In this way, simulations of a reduced work pace showed the effectiveness of this organizational measure in lowering the risk of UL-WMSD.

Human reliability analysis (HRA) has been identified as a key approach to improve quality in the manufacturing sector. This paper presents the results of the application of SHERPA to a manual assembly task case in the electronic industry, i.e., the assembly of a printed circuit board. It also compares the use of SHERPA with other HRA techniques in a manufacturing context. A total of 16 subtasks were obtained from the breakdown of the task that was the object of study and 12 error modes were identified based on SHERPA taxonomy: eight action errors, two checking errors, and two selection errors. The use of SHERPA provides a useful framework for identifying human errors in manual assembly even though this technique was not specifically developed for manufacturing. The analysis of human errors in manufacturing needs to consider and integrate a vocabulary harmonized with production planning. Comparison between SHERPA and other HRA techniques shows that the focus of the analysis should be placed on error identification rather than the calculation of error probabilities. A semi-quantitative index could help to reconcile these approaches by identifying and evaluating error modes in their propensity to occur, without the need for an accurate estimation of error probabilities.

The objective with this project is to develop a key performance indicator (KPI) related to work environment deviations, such as risk observations, near misses and injuries. This as a support for managers decision making in steering companies towards higher risk awareness as well as to contribute to the development of safer and more sustainable work environments and jobs. In addition, the aim is to contribute to a work environment (WE) reporting standard with a KPI related to the severity of WE deviations. Based on a literature study an iterative development of such a KPI has resulted in the Sustainable Risk Awareness Index (the SRA Index) and a visualization of it and its components using the Risk Awareness Triangle, also developed in this project. The development of the SRA Index is described and the index is exemplified with data from the electrical installation sector, the healthcare industry and one of Sweden’s largest private health company. Also the Risk Triangle is exemplified. The need for and the advantages of standardized methods to report WE deviations in companies sustainability reports are discussed. It is concluded that initial use of this KPI, according to management, fills an identified gap, it provides the management with a usable tool for systematic work environment overview and it supports their informed decision-making.

International efforts to improve occupational safety and health (OSH) in garment suppliers in developing countries have so far had little impact. External pressure from international buyers and multi-stakeholder initiatives tends to result in window-dressing changes decoupled from OSH practice on the shop floor. Experience from interventions in the garment industry in Bangladesh shows that using lean as a tool to integrate OSH with productivity can create considerable improvements, and thereby offers prospects for new strategies to secure safety and health in the garment industry in emerging economies.

The exoskeleton technology is discussed as a promising approach in order to relieve physical work in logistics and thereby contribute to health prevention. In recent years, several models have come onto the market that are designed to support specific manual activities. However, especially the work in logistics is characterized by changing activities that cause different physical strains. An exoskeleton test center is being set up at Fraunhofer IML to investigate the effect of exoskeletons in realistic workplaces under laboratory conditions. In a logistics course consisting of typical main and secondary activities of logistics workers, exoskeletons of different categories will be compared in participant studies. Objective and subjective methods are used to analyze movement behavior and performance effects as well as to determine user impression. In a preliminary study, two participants tested a powered exoskeleton over a four-week period in a selected area of the logistics course while their movements were analyzed with motion capturing. The findings will be used to design the planned studies with a larger study sample. After evaluation of the exoskeleton test center and the experimental design, it can be used by future users as well as for exoskeleton manufacturers.

Frequently occurring mental and physical workloads as well as increased break absences represent a health risk for warehouse workers and a cost risk for companies in the long term. The project “Dynamic Break Management” aims to maintain health, productivity and safety of warehouse workers with the help of individual break recommendations. Using a sensor wristband, a smartphone application and methods of artificial intelligence (AI), stress is to be predicted on the basis of physiological data and breaks are to be recommended individually. The breaks are coordinated with the company’s internal processes. The app is developed in accordance with internationally applicable ergonomics standards. Both, the presentation of information and the interaction between human and technology, should be user-friendly in order to increase the acceptance of the technology application and its regular use. The article gives an overview of the IT architecture of the research project “Dynamic Break Management” and the current state of development. Furthermore, different user interface (UI) concepts for the smartphone app are discussed based on the state of research on the ergonomic design of the UI of apps.

Education and training play an increasingly meaningful role in recent research on Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) through the whole companies’ supply chains. However, considering the extent of the subject, most research works focus on specific issues, which are not easily replicable in other contexts. Therefore, this work gathers the main results achieved by researchers and systematically identifies leading research paths and trends for future works. A review and systematic categorisation of the existent literature have deemed essential for achieving the scope. The Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA) technique has been chosen to extract meaningful information on education and/or training and cluster articles, which have been grouped into eight topics. This analysis has brought out several key factors (industry hazards, workers’ motivation, availability of technologies, etc.) that influence the success or failure of implementing OSH education and training programs. This work pays particular attention to human factors which, if effectively managed, would induce a great step forward for OSH education and training. There is still little or no evidence of education and training’s effectiveness through time since monitoring the outcomes has been often neglected by the management. Nonetheless, Industry 4.0 technologies will help to fill this gap by enabling real-time and continuous tracking of outcomes, which will pave the way for several future works.

In recent years manufacturing and assembly lines are undergoing workplace changes with a scope to adapt to the Industry 4.0 (I4.0) design principles. Automation of manufacturing, collaborative robots (cobots), interconnection of cyber physical systems (CPS), cloud computing, big data analytics and Augmented/Virtual reality (AR/VR) are some of the technologies that are being introduced in industry. Human operators are required to adapt and integrate into those new environments. Human operators should be flexible in their work-tasks, upgrade their skillset and be able to act as a safeguard entity in this complex and dynamic environment. A recent shift in paradigms, the Industry 5.0 concept, focus on the sustainability of the human factor inside the technologies that I4.0 framework introduced, and relates to the ageing workforce issue and the change in individuals’ capabilities. Productivity and safety of the ageing operators in the new workplace environment is causally related to their capabilities. In this research paper, we (i) study the interactions of human operator inside the “smart” workplace and (ii) develop a model using the entropy concept of statistical mechanics. This model can be utilized in the evaluation of human factor inside the complex environment by computing the probability of error based on human operator capabilities.

Order picking is the most labor-intensive task in a warehouse with high risks for the development of musculoskeletal disorders. However, ergonomic planning models in order picking are still rare. This article presents a new ergonomic storage location assignment (SLA) algorithm based on a biomechanical model (“The Dortmunder”) which reduces the mechanical load of the lumbar spine.In order picking experiments in a laboratory with 12 subjects the derived ergonomic SLA is compared to a SLA minimizing the travel distance of the operator. For the evaluation of the physiological strain of the operators in both approaches, the subjects are equipped with an EMG-System, measuring electrical activity of four muscles of the back and the shoulder-arm system. Furthermore, perceived exertion (Borg RPE scale) and the cycle time needed to complete all picks are collected.The mean and dynamic electrical activity is significantly lower in almost all examined muscles with the ergonomic SLA. Also, the perceived exertion at the end of the picking trial is significantly reduced with the ergonomic SLA. The cycle time recorded shows no difference between the two assignment strategies.The storage location assignment algorithm presented here is able to reduce the physiological strain and perceived exertion of operators. Further studies are recommended to evaluate, if it can be used in real warehouses to reduce the risk of developing musculoskeletal disorders without losing efficiency.

Goods-to-person picking is a dynamic, semi-automated or fully automated picking method. The main physical workloads are caused by standing work postures and repetitive movements of the upper extremities.This paper presents the results of the ergonomic analysis of the physical workloads during picking at eight mock-up workstations for intralogistics. Workloads resulting from the standing work postures and repetitive movements of the upper extremities were analyzed and evaluated in laboratory studies using EAWS - method and the Captiv Motion Capture system. The weights of the picked products, picking frequencies and arrangement of storage and order totes were varied. Results show that order picking with exclusively low load weights (<3 kg) and not very high picking frequency (<700 picks/h) does not lead to high physical stress at the stations. However, higher pick frequencies (>700 picks/h) or higher weights result in increased physical workloads (EAWS values >25 points).

Automated driving is an ever-fast developing technology which is going to change the traffic system fundamentally. This development raises the question about how to interact in urban, less-regulated situations involving automated vehicles (AV) and vulnerable road users (VRU) like cyclists and/or pedestrians. Thus, it is essential to gain an understanding of interactions between VRU and current, mainly non-automated vehicles. This study focusses on cyclist-vehicle interaction and raises the questions whether there are typical interaction parameters. To address these issues, data of a previous Naturalistic Cycling Study (NCS), was re-analyzed. The selected sample consisted of 11 cyclists (ranging from 24 to 48 years, 8 males, 3 females). The subjects’ bicycles were instrumented with two cameras (forward view and face of the rider) that recorded a four-week lasting cycling period. In total, 69 interactions between cyclists and vehicles in less-regulated traffic context were analyzed. As a result of this descriptive approach, we identified common cyclist maneuvers (e.g., avoiding) and behavioral parameters (e.g., keeping constant speed) in the light of different infrastructural context. The discussion addresses the functionality of different behavioral patterns and the arising challenges for AV technology.

The introduction of conditionally automated driving [25] implies repeated transitions of the driving task between the human operator and the automated driving system (ADS). Human-machine interfaces (HMIs) facilitating these shifts in control are essential. Usability serves as an important criterion to assess the quality of an HMI design. This paper derives a study design for assessing the usability based on the best practice advice by [1]. The paper covers the applied definitions of usability, the sample characteristics, the test cases, the HMIs, the dependent variables, the procedure, the conditions of use, and the testing environment. The study design will be applied in a driving simulator and three test track experiments in different countries within an ongoing project. This involves a number of safety, technical and resource constraints in the development of the study design. This paper describes the challenges and limitations of applying a generic best practice advice to the varying test settings. Furthermore, two HMI concepts are developed and evaluated in an expert assessment. The two concepts will serve as the research subjects in the series of experiments. The proposed study design is suitable for application in different test settings. Therefore, the comparability between the experiments is high. This paper provides a first step in a validation project with the overall goal to propose a practical approach to usability testing of ADS HMIs that covers different constructs of usability and appropriate dependent variables within their application areas.

Drivers with visual field loss show a heterogeneous driving performance due to the varying ability to compensate for their perceptual deficits. This paper presents a theoretical investigation of the factors that determine the development of adaptive scanning strategies. The application of the Saliency-Effort-Expectancy-Value (SEEV) model to the use case of homonymous hemianopia in intersections indicates that a lack of guidance and a demand for increased gaze movements in the blind visual field aggravates scanning. The adaptation of the scanning behavior to these challenges consequently requires the presence of adequate mental models of the driving scene and of the individual visual abilities. These factors should be considered in the development of assistance systems and trainings for visually impaired drivers.

Human trust is a key factor in the adoption of autonomous vehicles. The development of trustworthy automation design offers the opportunity to address users’ concerns well in advance. However, uncertainties may remain due to the novelty of the technology. Hence, concepts are needed that foster users’ trust also during and after the rollout. In this survey, we introduce a user-centered trust label for autonomous shuttles. In an empirical mixed methods approach, we identified and evaluated label requirements and trust criteria from the perspective of prospective users as a basis for design concepts. Key findings show that the idea of a trust label is well received and has the potential to foster users’ trust towards autonomous shuttles. Trust in the label requires, above all, an independent awarding institution. To increase the trustworthiness of the autonomous shuttle service through the label, it must in particular make safety-relevant aspects visible and enable user participation. Design drafts show concepts for an analog trust label attached to the vehicle as well as interactive app features. Findings are useful to researchers in the field of human-automation interaction as well as to developers and providers of innovative mobility services to enhance passenger experience.

According to Hoff and Bashir (2015), who developed a theoretical model of trust in automation, this study deals with pedestrians’ adoption of automated vehicles (AVs) and their trust in the AVs. External HMI (Human Machine Interface) integrated into AV is known to increased pedestrians’ trust during road crossing. To empirically apply this model and evaluate the trust potential of eHMI’s, we conducted a study with 49 participants in a virtual reality environment. The study manipulated two factors: vehicle type (conventional, automated, and automated with eHMI) and road infrastructure (unmarked, pedestrian crossing with and without traffic lights). Participants self-rated their trust in automation before and after the study. Trust and emotions were retrieved after each road crossing. Preliminary results indicated a positive impact of eHMI on pedestrian’s behaviors, trust and emotional levels. Infrastructure was also enhancing positive emotions and trust. During an uncertain situation such as pedestrian crossing, pedestrians felt more control with a conventional vehicle than an automated vehicle. The theoretical application of Hoff and Bashir’s model is discussed regarding the results. Further research is needed to clarify dynamic contexts’ implications and eHMI efficiency on automation trust.

To ensure the safe and correct use of conditionally automated driving functions, users need to be given appropriate information about the system’s limitations and their responsibilities. This study compares the effect of two interactive driver education video tutorials with varying levels of information relating to the intended use of SAE Level 3 (Lvl 3) automated driving. The results indicate that drivers benefit more from a greater information depth with specific examples than from high-level, generalised information. In conclusion, it is recommended that current driver information and training practise is revised in line with the new requirements arising from the introduction of automated driving.

Which are the subjective feelings and objective risks of driving in an automatic mode when holding the steering wheel or not holding it? Two conditions of simulated driving of a partially automated car have been tested (hands-on and hands-off), in two situations of driving on highways including critical events forcing the driver to take over. The user subjective experiences were compared: the situation awareness, feelings of safety, control, attention, on-board activities, psychological and physical comfort were analyzed on the basis of in-depth interviews right after the activity. For the critical situations designed, the performance results indicate a negative impact of the hands-off condition on the takeover. The hands-off condition is appreciated for its comfort and the multi-activity it allows, but the hands-on condition is objectively and subjectively safer in critical situations.

We investigated the appropriate time window duration for calculating eye and head movement parameters in mental workload (MWL) estimation during automobile driving. Participants performed driving tasks on a driving simulator, and eye and head movements were measured by controlling their MWL using the N-back task, which required them to keep answering aloud the N-th previous digit in a sequence of digits. The eye and head movement parameters were calculated by changing a time window from 30 s to 150 s in increments of 30 s. An anomaly detector of MWL was constructed using the one-class support vector machine (OCSVM) with the no N-back task (“None”) data. In each window length condition, we calculated the area under curve (AUC) for the binary classification between None and the highest MWL condition, the percentage of anomaly data, and the distance from the decision boundary. The results showed that a time window of 30 s had significantly lower AUC compared with other time windows. In addition, the correlation coefficient between the subjective MWL score and the distance of each eye movement parameter data from the decision boundary monotonically increased in the time window 30 s to 120 s and decreased at 150 s. Therefore, we concluded that 60 s to 120 s is an appropriate time window duration for MWL evaluation.

Using an integrative user-centered approach, the research project aimed at designing and assessing an adaptive HMI to improve the safety and the quality of the take-over in a level-3 automated vehicle.Future autonomous driving users confirmed the need for the monitoring systems to improve safety as long as they are simple and not intrusive. They request specific information to understand and initiate appropriated actions in case of a critical situation. However, to avoid overloading and detrimental effects, it is important that the system limits the amount of information at the right moment.

The mobility data available in any city allows the urban managers to create models for the traffic flow and increase the streets’ safety. However, a small group of technical people often creates these models without the citizens’ participation, the core beneficiary of any public policy. A Human Smart City is only possible with the population engaged in the co-creation of solutions for collective social change. In this paper, we review the case of the speed limits reduction on the two main highways in São Paulo, in 2015. Despite the positive results on accidents and traffic jams indicators, a major part of society did not approve the new policy, and two years later, the speed limits returned to the previous values. This example shows the importance of the population’s participation in the creation of urban policies. Conclusively, we discuss the impact of communication for success in public policy planning and its implementation.

Sitting comfort in next-generation cars was explored using a key objective measure of vibration transmission. Connected, autonomous, shared, and electric vehicles (CASE mobility) will allow users to engage in several on-board activities. Within a laboratory experiment, the arrangement of the seat–occupant system was characterized with reference to performed activities in terms of “sitting configuration”. Six males and six females occupying a car seat were exposed to four whole-body vibrations in four sitting configurations matching four pairs of activities. Primary-resonance modulus of vertical in-line transmissibility at seat cushion was calculated from acceleration measurements and used as the response variable of an ANOVA model. The model showed an appreciable main effect of both vibration magnitude and sitting configuration as well as a limited interaction between them. Conversely, it failed to show a main effect of sex and any sex-related interactions; nevertheless, for all treatments, the within-group mean value of the response variable was greater for males than for females. Results suggest that not only vibration magnitude but also sitting configuration and possibly sex affect sitting comfort in next-generation cars for CASE mobility.

To this point, research regarding Human-Machine Interfaces (HMIs) and information needs in automated vehicles has focused on the period when the automation is active whereas this study investigated information needs regarding an AutomSSSated Driving System (ADS) while the same is not available. A driving simulator study (N = 34) was conducted to measure the effects of displaying the time until the automation will be available as well as reasons for non-availability on subjective ratings of the system and perceived system understanding. No effects were found for subjective ratings as usability, acceptance and workload, but there was a significant increase in perceived system understanding. Even though acceptance and usability showed no significant increase, participants ranked HMI concepts containing additional information higher than the baseline concept. The results indicate that HMIs giving information on the automation while it is not available are perceived favorably by participants and can increase transparency of the automation.

As automation of driving emerges, the driver becomes a passenger. If an automation reaches its system limits, the driver is obliged to retake the control over the vehicle. Grabbing the steering wheel is essential to assume lateral control, however non-driving related activities enabled by the automation may interfere with this process. This paper showcases the method modeling the orientation of hand trajectories while grabbing four different handles. In a study presented in [1] the hand trajectories of 48 participants grabbing four different handles were recorded and modelled using a mixed linear effects approach. The present paper extends this research by modeling the orientation of these trajectories. As the grasping trajectories appear to lie on a two-dimensional plane, the angle between the trajectory plane and a reference plane was modeled in a mixed linear effects model with “lme4” [2] and “afex” [3]. The maximal deviation from the plane is 10.7 mm with a mean of 2.3 mm (SD = 1.3 mm). The data shows the small influence of individual (gender, age, dominant hand, body height) and the high influence of environmental (position and type of the grasping handles) factors.

In this paper, a new theoretical model for driving posture assessment is proposed. Other than many models that focused on sitting (dis-)comfort evaluation, our model evaluates both sitting and driving activities such as steering and pedal control. By regarding both subjective and objective posture evaluation methods, we summarized several findings from literature in this field and extracted three aspects for driving posture evaluation, i.e., accommodating various sitting strategies, reducing physical strain, and allowing the optimum physical performance of drivers. Essential impact factors were selected accordingly to determine the essential parameters for a more holistic evaluation process. These could be used for further development of digital human modeling software like RAMSIS. The new model would potentially allow a more effective and ergonomic occupant packaging.

In this paper we present the results from a Goal Directed Task Analysis (GDTA), a variant of cognitive task analysis techniques, to extract the operator’s situation awareness requirements. This analysis is done with 8 pilots from the Mid Saint-Laurence Pilots Corporation (CPSLC) on a ship docking scenario in a compulsory pilotage area. These findings are used to develop a tool to measure the pilot’s situation awareness during the maneuver using SAGAT questionnaire.

In this paper, we report a secondary analysis of data collected from two driving simulator experiments to understand the effects of SAE-Level 2 driving automation on drivers’ glances in anticipation of traffic events. Background: Current state-of-the-art consumer vehicle automation requires drivers to monitor the road and intervene when automation fails. Limited research has investigated the effects of automation on drivers’ anticipation of upcoming traffic events. We recently reported two driving simulator studies that focused on drivers’ glance behaviors before such events; however, we did not compare the results of these two studies. Methods: In this paper, we report statistical analyses comparing the glance data from these two studies that had 32 participants each, half of whom were novices and the other half were experienced drivers. The two experiments were comparable in terms of the driving scenarios that required anticipation: the first experiment focused on driving without automation; while the second focused on driving with automation consisting of adaptive cruise control and lane keeping assistance. Further, half of the participants in each experiment were provided with a self-paced visual-manual secondary task. Results: In the no-secondary-task condition, drivers in the automation experiment spent a higher percent of time glancing at anticipatory cues that indicated an upcoming traffic event than did drivers in the no-automation experiment. In the secondary-task condition, no such difference was observed between the two experiments. Conclusion: When there is no distraction to engage in, it appears that automation can allow drivers to have increased visual attention to anticipatory cues.

For the successful implementation and acceptance in road traffic, pedestrians’ attitudes towards safety, interaction and compatibility of AVs are important factors. The aim of this study is to investigate general attitudes towards AVs and to generate knowledge about aspects of safety and compatibility of AVs as well as interaction with AVs from the viewpoint of pedestrians. Semi-structured interviews with 24 participants were conducted in Germany between May and July 2020. Interviews were recorded, transcribed and analysed using Qualitative Content Analysis. The classification of participants regarding their general attitude towards AVs resulted in four categories, ranging from enthusiastic to rejecting attitudes. Our results revealed that safety attitudes are a major factor underlying pedestrians’ general attitudes towards AVs. Confidence to cross the road in front of AVs was influenced by the ability of AVs to successfully interact and communicate with pedestrians. We conclude that pedestrians’ attitudes towards AVs may change with increasing interaction experience.

Multi pedestrian scenarios are the next step towards more realistic traffic research. We conducted a traffic observation with uninformed pedestrians to find differences in behavior depending on the pedestrians group sizes. We found out that most of the pedestrian’s behavior occurs while they approach the street curb which hasn’t been reported in previous research yet. This paper reports several objective data concerning pedestrians’ positions, actions and their timings during the approach towards the curb. We identify potential differences between single pedestrians and two pedestrian groups. The results lay the basis for a future controlled experiment where the found differences will be statistically evaluated.

Culture has been identified as a factor influencing the way people communicate and behave. Though often imperceptible by its members, cross-cultural interactions can lead to misunderstandings and conflicts. Despite ex-military and civilian trained pilots frequently flying together, there has been a lack of research describing each professional sub-culture. The current study aims to bridge that gap by exploring how professional culture interacts in the cockpit and how it affects pilots’ safety behaviours. The study used in-depth semi-structured interviews with 15 participants (14 helicopter pilots) to collect data on effects of professional culture. The data were analysed using conventional content analysis. Content analysis indicated five separate categories relevant to perceptions of professional culture. The findings indicate that pilots acknowledge the cultural differences present between themselves and others, and that culture can have an effect on their and other’s safety behaviours. The participants suggested that various sub-culture types can have impact on flight safety through their effects on communication and the way people interact, but not through technical skills of flying the aircraft. The differences between military and civilian training and flying were discussed in depth. This research highlights the various ways in which culture affects pilots’ safety behaviours and interactions with one another. It also provides an in-depth look at the way pilots perceive and experience cross-cultural interactions in the cockpit.

Minimal Risk Maneuvers (MRMs) are introduced to reduce the risk of an accident during the transition from automated to manual driving. In this paper, we present the results of a dynamic driving simulator study with 56 participants with the control authority as the independent variable, i.e. allowing and blocking driver input during the MRM. In order to not communicate wrong information, input blocking was established by disabling the brake and gas pedal but not the steering wheel. The latter turned according to the performed MRM and participants had to overcome high counterforces to change the vehicle’s direction. Two scenarios on a highway were investigated with the ego vehicle located in the right lane and only differing in the implemented MRM, i.e. stopping in the own lane or maneuvering to the shoulder lane combined with a standstill. Our results show a high intervention rate in both groups. Participants intervened mainly by maneuvering into the middle lane and after the Human-Machine-Interface announced the upcoming maneuver. In total, four accidents and five dangerous situations occurred due to interventions in both groups. Trajectories during re-entering into traffic showed that participants favored the middle lane over the shoulder lane here as well. To conclude, allowing or blocking driver intervention did not reduce the risk of an accident and more countermeasures need to be taken.

With regard to autonomous driving and associated new interior concepts of the vehicle, the focus will be on innovative and efficient air-conditioning concepts concerning the seat. The seat offers the opportunity to provide air-conditioning close to the body of the passenger. A new seat ventilation which generates a directed air flow to the passenger is developed. In the following investigation, an outlet air duct concept at the side of the seat is objectively assessed. Furthermore, the thermal comfort regarding different climate conditions is investigated. When evaluating the results according to the comfort zone diagrams of ISO14505-2:2006 the seat outlets perform well for hot climate conditions during a pull-down. Cold ambient temperatures are less suitable for this outlet system. More investigations are necessary to test whether this concept, in combination with other air-conditioning systems, can result in potential energy savings and increasing thermal comfort.

Future traffic will be determined by the joint interaction of automated vehicles and other traffic participants in mixed traffic environments. For an overall safe and efficient traffic flow, the communication between automated vehicles and pedestrians must be ensured. An external human-machine interface (eHMI) serves as a communication channel between automated vehicles and other traffic participants. However, it remains unclear how information needs may differ for different vehicle types and how this should be considered in the eHMI design. This experimental online study investigates the pedestrians’ interactions with two different automated vehicle types (car vs. bus) on a shared space. Both vehicles were equipped with the same eHMI communication strategies (mode awareness, intention-based, perception-based, combination) based on a LED light-band eHMI. Short video sequences from a pedestrians’ perspective were shown in which the participants interacted with both vehicle types. Results showed that participants felt significantly safer and more comfortable when interacting with the car compared to the bus. Furthermore, participants felt significantly safer and better informed when an eHMI communication strategy was presented vs. mere mode awareness vs. no eHMI at all for both vehicle types (car vs. bus).

Communication between pedestrians and automated vehicles is playing a key role in enhancing the safety of future traffic environment. The current study attempted to suggest new insights into designing external human-machine interfaces (eHMIs) in automated vehicles for traffic safety as examines negative effects of the eHMI on pedestrian crossing behaviour in a situation where an automated vehicle yields to pedestrian. Virtual Reality systems simulated three experimental conditions: baseline (no eHMI), showing “After you” and “I’ll stop” via eHMI on an automated vehicle in residential areas. The experiment using human participants resulted that conveying information via eHMI led pedestrians to do less careful exploratory behaviour toward other traffic. The result also showed the greater number of traffic collisions when the eHMI showed information compared to non-eHMI condition. The findings of this study are also being used to help how to design the eHMI on automated vehicles in shared spaces.

Automated driving aims to enhance traffic safety. However, as long as drivers have the opportunity to take back manual control of the automated vehicle, they can disable automation to drive manually at any time. For an increase in traffic safety, this driver-initiated driver control should not occur in safety-critical situations when the automated system works faultlessly. In this driving simulator study, factors influencing the decision to take back manual control of an automated vehicle were investigated. Participants (N = 46) were driven by an automated system on a two-lane country road behind a slow vehicle. The visual range was restricted by fog. Therefore, the automation did not perform an overtaking maneuver. The automation could be disabled by the driver to overtake the preceding vehicle by performing a safety-critical maneuver. The influences of impulsivity and sensation seeking as well as three automation feedback systems on the decision to take back manual control were examined. Results indicated that high sensation seeking as well as high impulsivity were associated with an earlier deactivation of the automation. Though, driver-initiated driver control was not influenced by the different automation feedback systems. This experiment provides insights into factors influencing driver-initiated driver control, which might be useful for the development of automated driving systems and guidelines for automated driving.

This study presents the challenge of considering a joystick to safely control a vehicle with partially automated system. This study answered two research questions. One is related to the safety of joystick control, the other is related to the functionality. 24 elderly drivers who had not been trained in joystick control participated in the driving simulation experiment. The driving simulator with joystick device simulated the highway scenario for collecting the driver behavior when they control the vehicle with ADAS support. The result showed that most of the participants were able to control the vehicle by joystick to safely overtake and lane changes under certain road condition. Also, this study found that the characteristic of using joystick for choosing to change the lane is about 1.6 s longer than conventional steering wheel condition, and the mental workload of the joystick control was significantly higher than when the driver using steering wheel.

Cooperative traffic situations, in which at least two agents interact, represent not only safety-critical situations but also relevant situations for maintaining traffic flow. The successful solution of cooperative situations depends on the decisions of involved road users and their mutually expected reactions. A video-based online study (N = 116) was conducted to compare the dependence between drivers’ decisions and expectations about other drivers in a narrow passage and lane change scenario. The effect of the perceived conflict between involved drivers’ outcomes and the perceived power to influence these outcomes were examined. Besides, perceived own and other drivers’ cooperativeness were analyzed. In most cases, drivers decided in accordance with their expectations. A tendency towards defensive decisions and a positivity bias in self-attributed cooperative driving in contrast to other drivers was observed. Varying perceptions of the situation on the inter-social level provide indications for mismatches between decisions, expectations, and preferences. The results give insights into expectation-based decision-making processes and associated factors that could influence traffic behavior.

This paper presents a study that aimed to evaluate aspects of Brazilian pedestrian behavior. The considerable number of collisions with pedestrians in low and middle-income countries is a governmental concern considering its impact on the economic and health system. A survey was conducted based on a self-report questionnaire. Two rounds of pre-tests were necessary to adapt the English version of the questionnaire into Brazilian Portuguese. This effort was necessary to make respondents comfortable and understand clearly the 122 questions presented in the questionnaire. Data collection activities are still on-going at the time of writing.

This paper describes how a user-oriented system for identification of public transport vehicles can be developed and evaluated. For this purpose, a vehicle design is first scaled with respect to the project requirements using a proven method and with decided consideration of customer and accessibility requirements. In a next step, it is demonstrated why the recognition of the bus by public transport users at bus stops has to be identified as critical. The following section systematically generates concepts for bus identification and presents them virtually. Finally, it is described how the concept evaluation can succeed with a pedestrian simulator and which results are obtained: For example, a number should do the primary bus identification, the route should be displayed at the boarding and the individual stop destination should be clearly highlighted on the route.

A major concern in the transportation sector is that of road accidents and fatalities occurring due to driver fatigue. In this study, we have developed tin-coated copper active electrodes embedded onto the vehicle seat cover that can ubiquitously measure driver cardiac parameters. The proposed cECG sensor system was evaluated with conventional ECG system in static and dynamic real-time driving scenarios. Experimental results from filtering and R peak detection show an improved determination coefficient higher than 98% for highways driving conditions and 93.7% for city driving conditions when compared to conventional ECG measurements. The decrease in cECG signal detection for city driving could be attributed to frequent upper body movements required for steering, gear shifting, and braking in city traffic as compared to highways. This is evident from the improvement in R peak detection accuracy for cECG measurements from the passenger’s seat when compared to the driver’s seat. Since the number of fatalities due to road traffic accidents are biased on highways than on city roads, the developed cECG system would be ideal for long-term driver health and fatigue monitoring with high accuracy.

According to WHO [1] data, about 1.4 million people die each year from road traffic collisions. Traffic collisions continue to be the one of the main causes of death in the world, which reflects that the lack of road safety is still a serious global problem, especially in low- and middle-income countries, where road safety policies they have not been as closely studied or implemented, resulting in a strong social impact.Ecuador is a developing country, and with a high mortality rate due to traffic collisions, it currently does not have the research base necessary to implement a properly informed management and intervention plan in order to improve road safety. This is the reason of this study.This project is mainly focused on the analysis of a pedestrian’s attitude and behavior as factors that are linked to minor, serious and moderate collisions on the roads. The analysis of these factors gives us extremely important information, which in turn includes those points where more attention should be paid from the health perspective.An interesting information of data obtained after analyzing the results of this project is that 60% of the population analyzed, whether as a pedestrian, driver or passenger, has been in a situation that could end in a serious collision, but did not end up injuring people. In other words, a large percentage of the population runs the risk of being harmed in a collision on the road due of the lack of road safety.

Psychophysiological studies have illustrated the role of stress in altering the reaction time in an individual. However, studies relating to driving stress and changes in driver’s reaction time are scarce. This study’s importance stems from the observation that driving stress is a critical causal factor of risky driving and on-road crashes. The study attempted to quantify the role of driving stress in altering the reaction time in drivers. Thirty subjects (Mean age = 24.56 ± 1.46 years, 18 males) volunteered to the study. The driving stress was induced by a highly congested urban simulated driving experiment. The reaction time before and after the simulated driving correlated with violations made during the simulated driving. The results suggest that risky behavior in driving stress could be attributed to impaired reaction time in drivers. The work highlights the importance of driving stress in congested roads and its implications of risky driving.

The study uses different types of music to induce different emotions of the subjects, then checks if the emotions affect driving behavior in different road environments. 30 subjects used the STISIM driving simulator to con-duct the experiments. A mixed factor design of 3 music types (positive vs negative vs no music) * 2 road environments (urban vs rural). After filling out an emotion scale, subjects listened to positive or negative music, recalled relevant memories that matched the emotion, and then filled out the emotion scale again. After reaching the conforming emotion, they listened to the mu-sic and followed a car while completing the driving task. The data collected driving behavior and the duration of TTC < 2.5(time to collision). The results show that an existing interaction between the environment and the music type: in the urban environment, the lane departure offset in non-music sce-narios is greater than that of positive and negative music—same goes for the rural environment. The total time of TTC < 2.5 s in the urban environment is longer than the rural environment; the longitudinal acceleration variation in the urban is higher than the rural environment.

Future vehicle design is mainly driven by the technology changes and the results of this transformation. Automated driving in particular creates completely new potential for vehicle design solutions. But also, future mobility means shared mobility: The classic form of mobility known as individual transport is increasingly moving into the background, thus being replaced by new mobility approaches such as car-sharing or ride-hailing. Unlike public transport, this specific change in passenger cars collides with the still strong desire for individuality. Adaptive elements in the vehicle context provide a solution to this conflict. The term adaptivity is a diversely used principle and does not generally offer any guidance for a user-centered development in the vehicle context. Within this contribution we derive necessary strategies for the development of user-centered adaptivity and describe them exemplarily. The three core strategies are Contextual Adaptation, Psychographical Adaptation and Anatomical Adaptation. These strategies create a guidance for the goal-oriented development of adaptive elements. In addition, several technologies and innovations were examined and potentials for further development are provided.

Future mobility is changing so that new requirements concerning air conditioning in vehicles arise. With the increase of electric- and the development of autonomously driving vehicles, classical air conditioning concepts ought to be adapted to fulfil new requirements. During the development of new climate concepts, the thermal wellbeing of the occupants in the vehicle need to be kept in mind. New air conditioning concepts will only prevail if they ensure adequate thermal comfort with reduced energy consumption. Objective evaluation methods are currently used to a limited extent during the application process for vehicle air conditioning. In the following investigation the interior climate for two vehicles (mid-range and upper-class) is objectively assessed and compared for a wide range of ambient temperatures from −20 °C to + 40 °C. During this investigation the ISO 14505-2:2006-12 is tested to find out whether it is suitable to assess and evaluate the thermal perception by measuring the equivalent temperature. When evaluating the results according to the comfort zone diagrams of ISO 14505-2:2006-12 the mid-range vehicle has a better interior climate than the upper-class vehicle. This paper will show that it is necessary to adapt the comfort zone diagrams to demographic differences that influence the thermal perception of humans.

Single-vehicle crashes are of major concern in developed and developing nations due to the severity of injuries. According to the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH, 2018) report, a total of 4,67,044 accidents have been reported by the states and union territories in which have claimed 1,51,417 lives. However, a clearer picture of single-vehicle crashes is unavailable. The present study's objective is to obtain a more precise understanding concerning the injury severity of the out-of-control single-vehicle four-wheeler crashes with the drivers being at fault. Contributory factors, including driver, roadway, and environmental characteristics, are investigated and discussed. The crash dataset for the present study was prepared from the police-reported single-vehicle crashes for the past nine years that occurred within Tamilnadu. The research team retrieved all the single-vehicle out-of-control four-wheeler crashes for the period between 2009 and 2017. To deal with that of the ordered categorical variable, ordinal logistic regression analysis was carried out. The brant test was carried out to check for the proportional odds assumption being valid or not. Younger and working-age group drivers, violation of rules, number of lanes, median separators, highways, and village roads were significantly associated with increased crash severity. Based on the above results’ findings, targeted countermeasures may be designed in light of the driver’s injury severity. For example, drivers who violate the law are prone to more severe injuries; awareness to strictly avoid such behaviors and strict law enforcement is need of the hour in those crashes.

Bus- pedestrian crashes typically result in more severe injuries and deaths than any other type of crashes due to physical characteristics such as heavyweight, large size and maneuvering restrictions. The statistical data report by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH, 2017) highlights that bus crashes alone account for about 6.9% of the total crashes occurring within the country. 10,651 (7.2%) persons have been killed, and 44,330(9.4%) persons have been injured in bus-involved collisions during 2017. The purpose of this research is to investigate the factors that significantly contribute to the severity of pedestrian injuries resulting from pedestrian- bus crashes using a random forest approach. Contributory factors, including the driver, pedestrian, and environmental characteristics, are investigated and discussed. The crash dataset for the present study was prepared from the police-reported pedestrian- bus crashes for the past nine years that occurred within Tamilnadu. The research team retrieved all the single-vehicle out-of-control four-wheeler crashes for the period between 2009 and 2017. Random Forest method is an ensemble method for classification problems that is a collection of decision trees. It aggregates all the predictions made by the decision trees into one final prediction. The complete dataset (11735) was divided into two separate datasets: the training dataset (9388) for the development of the model and the testing dataset (2347) for the performance evaluation of the model. The most significant variables in RF were found to be the number of lanes (both single and two-lane), presence of median separators, crashes occurrence at the intersection was unknown and pedestrians aged above 55 years. Based on the findings of the above results, targeted countermeasures may be designed in light of the injury severity of the pedestrians in pedestrian- bus collisions.

Almost everyone can experience motion sickness and one third of the population are highly susceptible. With growing development and popularity of technologies such as self-driving cars, simulators and virtual reality (VR), motion sickness management will be more of a consideration in the future than ever before. People who are susceptible to motion sickness may not gain the full benefits of self-driving cars (e.g., increased productivity), have access to vocations involving significant simulator-based training (e.g., airplane pilots), or have access to the increased opportunities that VR headsets may bring (e.g., vocational training or job roles involving VR). Further, with demographic variance within susceptibility to motion sickness, it is known some demographic groups are far more susceptible to motion sickness than others (e.g., females vs. Males), which further identifies an inclusivity aspect to these technologies. This report evidences the strong motivation towards the mitigation of motion sickness and discusses the associated benefits. Working towards the objective of enhanced motion sickness management, this paper presents a new model to detail the onset of motion sickness syndrome and discusses the causal relationship between sensory conflict and the physiological and psychological effects of motion sickness. In doing so we identify within the existing literature many methods towards the management (both prevention and mitigation) of motion sickness and provide a direction for further study.

Exposure to Whole body Vibration (WBV) has been associated with an increased prevalence of low back pain in occupational settings. Current WBV directives, guidelines and standards are devoid of any recommendations for the length of time needed to accurately and reliably characterize a vehicle operator’s daily, full-shift exposure to WBV. Using full-shift, seat-measured, tri-axial WBV exposures from a group of 64 regional truck drivers, the daily WBV exposures were cut to simulate different lengths of measurement (5, 7.5, 10, 15, 30, 60, 120, 240 and 480 min). The differing lengths of the data (5 to 240 min) were then normalized to reflect 8-h of vehicle operation [A(8) and VDV(8)]. The analysis of the data demonstrated that the z-axis was the predominant exposure axis and a measurement duration of 30-min or longer would be required to accurately estimate a truck driver’s daily, full-shift A(8) and VDV(8) exposures. Determining the minimum required measurement duration can help reduce the costs associated with WBV exposure assessment.

This study aimed to reveal how instructed knowledge influences human drivers to make decisions in complex driving-task traffic environments when they use conditional driving automation (CDA). A driving simulator experiment was conducted to collect data in resuming car control from automation; 54 individuals (mean age = 40.9 ± 16.8 years old) participated. According to the experimental results, imparting knowledge of the request to intervene (RtI) helped to reduce the reaction time (RT) to the RtI to 1.22 s on average, but also caused 20% of drivers to resume vehicle control who failed to choose the correct route in terms of the issued route guidance. This ratio was significantly higher than the 3% of drivers who were unfamiliar with the RtI, but were only instructed on the necessity of taking over car control due to functional limitations. On the other hand, 28% of those drivers resumed control for responding to the guidance before the system limitation occurred. Further, subjective assessment suggests that the drivers tended to over-rely on their instructed knowledge, and were prone to overlooking other important details when the knowledge was restricted to the specified concept. Conveying knowledge appropriately not only contributes to driver interventions, but also greatly impacts other kinds of decision-making performance.