4 research outputs found
School combo-desk comfort assessment: a method for weighing postural factors that affect the overall perceived comfort while performing different activities
t In recent years, a growing interest in ergonomics and comfort perception in secondary schools and universities
can be detected, with the aim of going beyond the UNI-EN regulations and understanding how practically improve
studentsâ perceived comfort during lessons. The aim of this study was to analyse the discomfort perceived by students
while sitting on combo-desk during lessons. A statistical sample of 20 healthy students performed a combination of three
different tasks in two sessions - listening, reading on a tablet and writing - in a mixed sequence. Subjective perceptions
were investigated through questionnaires, in which the expected comfort and the overall one were rated on a 10-point
comfort scale and the perceived comfort on a 5-point Likert scale. Subjectâs postures were acquired non-invasively using
cameras; KinoveaÂŽ software was used to detect postural angles directly on pictures; the acquired angles were used for
the virtual-postural analysis, using a DHM (Digital Human Modelling) software; CaMANÂŽ software was used to obtain
an objective measure of the postural comfort. Once correlations between subjective and objective data were calculated,
the results of the analysis were used to define the influence of each body part comfort on the overall perceived comfort
and to quantify the weight of each factor influencing the overall perception. Finally, some guidelines to modify the combodesk design, in order to increase the level of perceived comfort, were developed
School combo-desk comfort assessment: A method for weighing postural factors that affect the overall perceived comfort
BACKGROUND:In recent years, a growing interest in ergonomics and comfort perception in secondary schools and universities can be detected, to go beyond the UNI-EN regulations and understanding how practically improve studentsâ perceived comfort during lessons. OBJECTIVE:This study aimed to analyse the (dis)comfort perceived by students while sitting in a combo-desk during lessons; it proposed a method for understanding and weighing the influence of postural factors on overall (dis)comfort. METHODS:Twenty healthy students performed a random combination of three different tasks in two sessions - listening, reading on a tablet and writing. Subjective perceptions were investigated through questionnaires, in which the expected and the overall comfort were evaluated; postural angles were gathered by processing photos through KinoveaÂŽ software and were used for the virtual-postural analysis, using a DHM (Digital Human Modelling) software; statistical analysis was used to investigate the influence of subjective comfort of each body part on the overall perceived comfort. RESULTS:The statistical correlations were used to perform an optimization problem in order to create a general law to formulate the overall comfort function, for each task, as a weighted sum of the comfort perceived in each body part. The test procedure, additionally, evaluated the influence on comfort over time. The results showed how the upper back and the task-related upper limb are the most influencing factors in the overall comfort perception. CONCLUSIONS:The paper revealed a precise and straightforward analysis method that can be easily repeated for other design applications. Obtained results can suggest to designers easy solution to re-design the combo-desk