International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics最新文献

{"title":"Modelling type 2 diabetic patients’ glucose metabolism for real-time predictive healthcare service","authors":"Qidi Zhang,&nbsp;Zhonghao Chang,&nbsp;Liang Ma","doi":"10.1016/j.ergon.2025.103802","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ergon.2025.103802","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) sensors and other smart wearables offer valuable opportunities for advancing diabetes disease self-management. However, whether patients may take advantage of CGM data, take preventative behavior, and achieve improved glucose self-management result under natural living conditions still needs to be explored. Human’ s capacity of time series data processing in glucose self-management scenario needs to be evaluated. Accordingly, this study aims to (1) examine whether wearing a CGM sensor alone is effective for glucose self-management and explore key obstacles if any, and (2) develop a high-performance predictive model for real-time glucose forecasting to facilitate self-management. Thirty Type 2 Diabetes (T2D) patients were recruited to collect 13–14 days of glucose, dietary, exercise, and medication data in real-world settings using CGM sensors and smart bands, supplemented by self-reported loggings. The results show no significant improvement in patients' mean glucose levels. An attention-enhanced long short-term memory (ALSTM) glucose prediction model was developed and validated using data from 20 out of the 30 participants, achieving high predictive accuracy for 30/60-min prediction accuracy (errors &lt;5 %). When applied to the other 10 participants, the model combined with deep transfer learning gained high prediction accuracy (errors &lt;6.4 % and 4.7 %, respectively), and may enable early-stage predictions for new patients with limited data. Further experiment with 60 graduate students showed that human’ s predicting accuracy cannot compete with the model and is insufficient for self-management. The proposed approach holds promise for future predictive interventions, enabling timely and personalized glucose management strategies for T2D patients.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":50317,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics","volume":"109 ","pages":"Article 103802"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2025-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144922302","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Influence of surface curvature and pinch span on the maximal force exertion of pinch grip: a prospective cohort study","authors":"Jeewon Choi ,&nbsp;Yu Lin ,&nbsp;Ping Yeap Loh","doi":"10.1016/j.ergon.2025.103800","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ergon.2025.103800","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study investigated how the pinch surface curvature and pinch span influence the maximal voluntary pinch grip forces (MVFs) for different pinch types. Twelve male participants (age range: 22–34) underwent MVF measurements using a pinch grip on a dynamometer with six interchangeable attachment surfaces. They were randomly assigned to either a concave or convex handle group, each tested with three pinch spans (3, 5, and 7 cm) using a custom-designed dynamometer (Model T.K.K. 1269m and TSA-210; Takei Scientific Instruments Co., Ltd.). The pinch type was controlled as a tip, three-jaw, or key pinch, and both the dominant and non-dominant hands were examined. After completing the trials for each condition, participants rated their overall comfort, perceived fit, and perceived difficulty on a 5-point rating scale. We demonstrated that the concave surface was associated with greater MVFs than the convex surface (<em>p</em> &lt; 0.01). However, the difference in MVF was insignificant when the pinch span was increased to 7 cm. The key pinch and dominant hand showed higher MVFs, better fit, and lower difficulty than their counterparts (key pinch: <em>p</em>s &lt; 0.05; dominant hand: <em>p</em>s &lt; 0.01). This study provides evidence on the design of pinch surface curvature and span that can effectively enhance MVF performance under varying pinch span conditions.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":50317,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics","volume":"109 ","pages":"Article 103800"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2025-08-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144890665","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Exploring the relationship between miners’ physiological signals and safety behavior in four emergency scenarios in coal mines: A virtual reality study","authors":"Yanyu Guo ,&nbsp;Jizu Li ,&nbsp;David Cliff","doi":"10.1016/j.ergon.2025.103801","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ergon.2025.103801","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study explores the relationship between miners' physiological signals and their safety behavior in emergency scenarios, with the aim of enhancing early warning systems for occupational safety. A virtual reality-based experiment was conducted in which miners were exposed to four simulated emergency scenarios. Physiological signals—including heart rate variability (Mean IBI, RMSSD, PNN50, LF/HF ratio), skin conductance (SC), and blood oxygen saturation (SPO₂)—were continuously recorded alongside behavioral performance measures such as reaction time and accuracy. Statistical analyses, including the Friedman test, repeated measures ANOVA, correlation analysis, and multivariate regression, revealed significant differences between emergency and resting conditions. Key findings indicated that faster reaction times were associated with lower PNN50 and SPO₂ but higher SC. Memory accuracy declined when PNN50 decreased and SC and skin temperature (SKT) increased. Discrimination performance improved with higher Mean IBI and SPO₂, but deteriorated with elevated RMSSD, PNN50, or reduced SKT. A classification model achieved 78.3 % accuracy in predicting miners’ safety behavior competence levels based on physiological inputs. These findings suggest a strong association between physiological responses and behavioral performance during emergencies, supporting the development of real-time physiological monitoring systems to enhance miners' safety. Further research should examine causal relationships and optimize predictive modeling approaches.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":50317,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics","volume":"109 ","pages":"Article 103801"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2025-08-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144885646","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Impact of back and leg-support exoskeletons on novice users’ attention during repetitive lifting task","authors":"Daniel Leibman,&nbsp;HeeSun Choi","doi":"10.1016/j.ergon.2025.103796","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ergon.2025.103796","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Industrial exoskeletons have the potential to reduce users' physical strain and fatigue and prevent injuries in manual and labor-intensive workplaces. However, the use of exoskeletons may increase users' attentional load, especially among those new to the technology, due to greater task demands involving adaptation to augmented and shifted physical capabilities, unfamiliarity with the device, and interference resulting from discomfort, device misfit, and mobility restrictions. In this study, 25 novice exoskeleton users performed an attentionally demanding visual target detection task concurrently with a repetitive lifting task, both with and without back- and leg-support exoskeletons using a within-subjects design. The results indicate that attentional task performance significantly declined when wearing exoskeletons, suggesting that exoskeleton use may impair users' attention. Participants' lifting task performance was also slowed when wearing exoskeletons. These findings suggest that exoskeleton use may initially impact workers’ performance on both motor and cognitive tasks. Changes in self-rated mental workload were not correlated with observed attentional decrements, indicating that subjective measure may not effectively detect cognitive demands associated with exoskeleton use.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":50317,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics","volume":"109 ","pages":"Article 103796"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2025-08-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144842468","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The effects of cognitive load and task precision restrictions on trunk and shoulder kinematics in a manual material handling task","authors":"Anas Kachlan ,&nbsp;Steven A. Lavender ,&nbsp;Carolyn Sommerich","doi":"10.1016/j.ergon.2025.103795","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ergon.2025.103795","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study examined how a concurrent mental task and precision restrictions affected the kinematics of the trunk and shoulder during a simulated lifting task. Musculoskeletal disorders in material handling operations are highly prevalent. In addition to completing physically demanding work, workers must also manage concurrent mental demands. Few studies have examined the effect of concurrent mental demands in occupationally relevant tasks. This study quantified the effects of varying degrees of cognitive loads and task precision demands on a material handling task by examining these effects on the kinematics of the trunk and shoulders. Eleven subjects lifted and placed a 5 kg box at one of three destination heights (low, middle, high) while performing a simultaneous cognitive task (no task, a simple task, a complex task) and under two precision conditions (low precision, high precision). The cognitive task consisted of time-based arithmetic questions at two levels of difficulty. The primary dependent measures were the angular velocities of the trunk and shoulders. Significant decreases in angular velocities for both higher cognitive load complexities and higher precision conditions were observed, which differed depending on the destination height. Overall, this study found that increased complexity of a simultaneous cognitive task and higher task precision requirements led to longer lift times and decreased joint velocities.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":50317,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics","volume":"109 ","pages":"Article 103795"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2025-08-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144842467","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Development and evaluation of a mixed reality system for health education on neck stiffness and soreness","authors":"Kuo-Wei Su ,&nbsp;Hung-Jen Chen ,&nbsp;Ching-Tzu Chen","doi":"10.1016/j.ergon.2025.103779","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ergon.2025.103779","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Mobile phones are indispensable in daily life, especially among university students, yet their prolonged use has been linked to postural problems such as neck stiffness and soreness - conditions that may reflect more serious underlying health issues. Concurrently, a global shortage of nursing personnel is challenging healthcare systems, emphasizing the need for innovative educational tools that alleviate the workload of nursing professionals. This research develops and evaluates a mixed-reality (MR) system using Microsoft HoloLens to offer health education on neck health. The system's usability and user satisfaction are assessed through subjective scales and qualitative feedback to determine its effectiveness versus traditional educational materials.</div><div>Twenty participants were randomly assigned to two groups: an MR-based HoloLens group and a traditional leaflet group (10 participants each). Both groups received identical health education content on neck stiffness and soreness. Participants completed a 9-item knowledge test and semi-structured interviews to assess comprehension and to help gather system usability feedback. The HoloLens group further evaluated the system using the System Usability Scale (SUS) and the Questionnaire for User Interaction Satisfaction (QUIS).</div><div>While knowledge acquisition scores are comparable between the groups, the HoloLens group exhibits significantly higher levels of engagement and stronger intent to pursue further health education. The MR system obtains a mean SUS score of 76, denoting “Good” usability and a grade B rating. QUIS responses indicate high satisfaction levels across usability constructs. Qualitative feedback highlights the immersive and interactive design of the HoloLens system, which fosters engagement and motivates users by connecting educational content to personal relevance and curiosity. These findings demonstrate the potential of MR technologies to transform health education by bridging the gap between static information delivery and dynamic learner engagement, ultimately supporting improved comprehension and sustained interest in health topics.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":50317,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics","volume":"109 ","pages":"Article 103779"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2025-08-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144779518","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Shoulder pain influences kinematics during farm work tasks: An in-field study","authors":"Angelica E. Lang ,&nbsp;Denise Balogh ,&nbsp;Opeyemi Vincent Akinluyi ,&nbsp;Niels Koehncke","doi":"10.1016/j.ergon.2025.103798","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ergon.2025.103798","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background</h3><div>Work-related musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) are prevalent among agricultural producers. Upper limb MSDs, especially in the shoulder and neck, are common, yet research on their development and prevention is limited. This study aims to investigate the influence of shoulder pain, age, and sex on shoulder kinematics during farm work tasks.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>Farmers in Saskatchewan were recruited and divided into groups with and without shoulder pain. Participants performed four tasks (Overhead Drill, Climb Seeder, Seed Bag Lift, Shovel) while wearing inertial measurement units (IMUs) to track humeral and scapular movements. Data were analyzed using linear regression and Kruskal-Wallis tests (p &lt; .05) to assess the effects of pain, age, and sex on shoulder kinematics.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>Forty-two participants (23 without pain, 19 with pain) completed the study. Pain significantly influenced shoulder kinematics during the Overhead Drill, Seed Bag Lift, and Shovel tasks. During the Overhead Drill, the pain group exhibited higher scapular upward rotation (p = .04, +5.1°) and females showed lower maximal humeral elevation (p = .049, −11.7°). In the Seed Bag Lift, the pain group had lower scapular upward rotation (p = .012, −18.7°) and higher humeral internal rotation (p = .04, +12.0°). Humeral elevation was also lower in the pain group during the Shovel task (p = .019, −12.7°).</div></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><div>Shoulder pain affects shoulder kinematics in farm work tasks, with variations depending on the task. Pain-related compensations can be both protective and harmful. These findings highlight the potential risk for shoulder injury in many aspects of farm work.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":50317,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics","volume":"109 ","pages":"Article 103798"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2025-08-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144773104","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Evaluation and improvement of rail station name list signage on platform for direction by VR experiments with eye-tracker","authors":"Weitong Wang ,&nbsp;Zijia Wang ,&nbsp;Yufeng Li ,&nbsp;Zixuan Mao ,&nbsp;Danyong Feng ,&nbsp;Liang Yu","doi":"10.1016/j.ergon.2025.103781","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ergon.2025.103781","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Although considerable research has been conducted on signage, there remains room for further study on platform station name list signage. To evaluate and improve this, wayfinding experiments were carried out in a virtual reality-based rail station. Participants' multidimensional eye movement data and wayfinding performance were collected. The results revealed that participants strongly favored horizontal signage (HS), while vertical signage (VS) demonstrated better wayfinding performance. Additionally, participants exhibited varying levels of attention towards different regions of different types. Based on these findings, the signage was modified, outperforming HS in effectiveness and surpassing VS in information clarity and conciseness. This study contributes to a deeper understanding of passengers' cognitive behavior during wayfinding on subway platforms, particularly concerning diverse signage types, and provides valuable recommendations for signage evaluation and optimization.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":50317,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics","volume":"109 ","pages":"Article 103781"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2025-08-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144773103","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"AR vs. physical displays: Pharmacists’ performance in identifying look-alike drug names","authors":"Pin-Ling Liu ,&nbsp;Chih-Ling Tsai ,&nbsp;Kang-Hung Liu ,&nbsp;Chien-Chi Chang","doi":"10.1016/j.ergon.2025.103794","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ergon.2025.103794","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Similar drug name confusion poses a significant risk in pharmacy practice, leading to medication errors with serious consequences. This study investigates pharmacists’ performance in recognizing look-alike drug names using an augmented reality (AR) virtual display versus a physical liquid crystal display (LCD) monitor. The influence of prior AR experience on performance was also examined. Twenty licensed pharmacists participated, performing recognition tasks on similar drug name pairs, with performance measured by accuracy rate, response time, fixation duration, and total fixation count. Results indicate that participants achieved an accuracy rate exceeding 96 % across all conditions, with overall accuracy slightly higher in the physical monitor environment. The AR display enabled task completion with significantly fewer total fixations compared to the physical monitor (<em>p</em> &lt; 0.05). Additionally, participants with prior AR experience exhibited faster response times and shorter fixation durations in the AR environment. There were interactions between environment and prior AR experience for response time and fixation duration, suggesting that performance across environments varied depending on user familiarity. While physical and AR displays each present unique advantages and limitations, these findings underscore the importance of user familiarity in adapting to emerging technologies in pharmacy practice.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":50317,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics","volume":"109 ","pages":"Article 103794"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2025-08-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144764156","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Pedestrians’ social empathy and interaction with wheelchair Users: The impact of user gestures and mobility aid design in a pilot study","authors":"Mohsen Rasoulivalajoozi","doi":"10.1016/j.ergon.2025.103793","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ergon.2025.103793","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Wheelchair users (WUs) experience various accessibility challenges in public spaces, which may lead them to seek assistance from pedestrians in difficult situations. In this context, understanding the factors influencing pedestrians' empathy and interaction with WUs facilitates their social interactions in challenging urban situations. This study examines how WUs’ body gestures and wheelchair design characteristics (WDCs) impact pedestrian perception and interaction. A pilot cross-sectional study was conducted with 52 participants in two phases: (1) a questionnaire assessing willingness to engage with WUs exhibiting independent or help-seeking gestures, and (2) evaluating four wheelchair types—from conventional to advanced—using key semantic descriptors of appearance and social perception. Findings revealed no significant relationship between age, gender, and willingness to interact across the two gesture conditions (p &gt; 0.05), except for a significant association between age and willingness to interact with users of advanced powered wheelchairs in the help-seeking gesture condition (p = 0.027). Also, pedestrians' willingness to interact was significantly higher when WUs exhibited help-seeking gestures compared to independence gestures (p &lt; 0.001). WDCs influenced pedestrian perceptions more strongly when WUs displayed independence (86.3 %) than help-seeking gestures (50 %). Moreover, analysis of semantic evaluations revealed distinct perceptual dimensions for advanced manual and powered wheelchairs, with three principal components identified for each, offering valuable insights for developing wheelchairs with greater social polish. This study highlights that both WDC and user gestures significantly affect pedestrian interaction, with the masking effect of help gestures on WDCs being a key finding. Additionally, advanced WDCs signify WUs' independence, helping reduce negative social stereotypes among pedestrians.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":50317,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics","volume":"109 ","pages":"Article 103793"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2025-08-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144764155","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}