Subjective Evaluation of Glovebox Gloves on Hand Tactility and Discomfort

Abstract

This study evaluated the subjective effects of glovebox gloves on hand tactility and discomfort. Three commercially available glovebox gloves, namely butyl, hypalon, and neoprene in 0.015" and 0.03" thickness, were selected for evaluation. The subjects first performed the tip pinch exertions with 11 Newton force repeatedly (12 times/minute) for 15 minutes with bare hand or gloved hands. Then, the subjects were asked right at the end of the tip pinch task to give a numeric score of discomfort using the Borg CR-10 scale. In addition, a disk-criminator was used to perform the static two-point discrimination test (2PD test) on the volar pad of subject's dominant index finger right after the completion of the tip pinch task. The results indicate that all gloved hands increase the discomfort scores significantly than that of bare hand. The results also show that 0.03" neoprene and hypalon gloves decreased the tactile performance significantly compared to that of bare hand. To maintain tactility and reduce discomfort during glovebox gloves usage, the results of this study indicate that butyl material could be selected since it could offer better performance for these subjective effects. In addition, thinner gloves could also be used to retain better tactility and comfort performances.