How the technical evolution is stretching the traditional ergonomics concept: The challenges of the soft factors PDF Download

Author: Sissel Guttormsen Schär
Publisher: GRIN Verlag
ISBN: 3640714164
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 11

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Book Description
Scientific Essay from the year 2004 in the subject Ergonomics, , language: English, abstract: Dieser Artikel spricht die neuen Herausforderungen für die Ergonomie an, welche durch die schnelle technologische Entwicklung entstehen. Wir können beobachten, wie durch die zunehmende Bedeutung von Software eine Verlagerung des Forschungsschwerpunktes in der Ergonomieforschung von hard factors zu soft factors stattfindet. Infolgedessen scheint die Softwareergonomie die nächste Hürde in der Ergonomieforschung zu sein. Ergonomische Gestaltung im Informationszeitalter stellt andere Herausforderungen als einen Computer nur benutzbar zu machen. Die technologische Entwicklung involviert Herausforderungen bezüglich der Implementierung von Usability durch die Ausnutzung der neuen technischen Möglichkeiten, z.B. durch die Entwicklung von neuen, benutzergerechten Methoden für Zusammenarbeit (z.B. distributed computer supported work), ermöglichen von neuen Interaktionsformen (z.B. basierend auf Gesten) und neue kognitive und emotionale Modelle für die Mensch-Maschinen Interaktion (z.B. emotional computing). Um die neuen Gelegenheiten wahrnehmen zu können, welche die technologische Entwicklung bietet, schlagen wir neue Forschung und Entwicklungen vor, die den folgenden vier Prinzipen und dem Denken der Softwareergonomie folgt. Rapid technological development results in new challenges for the ergonomics field. The technological development involves new challenges concerning the implementation of usability by exploiting the new technical possibilities, e.g. by developing new user-centered aims for methods of work, enabling new forms of interaction, and developing new cognitive and emotional models for human computer interaction (HCI). We suggest four guiding principles for further research and development in the field of software ergonomics: 1. The priorities for software ergonomics research need to be re-formulated 2. Knowledge & models for applied perception and information processing need continuous re-evaluation 3. A shift from technology driven to human factors driven HCI design is due 4. New methods for measurement of usability are necessary. This paper gives an overview over the actual challenges and possibilities for software ergonomics given by new technological development. Four suggested guiding principles for research propose actual priorities and offer applied examples of new forms of interaction.

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Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 206

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Backpacker brings the outdoors straight to the reader's doorstep, inspiring and enabling them to go more places and enjoy nature more often. The authority on active adventure, Backpacker is the world's first GPS-enabled magazine, and the only magazine whose editors personally test the hiking trails, camping gear, and survival tips they publish. Backpacker's Editors' Choice Awards, an industry honor recognizing design, feature and product innovation, has become the gold standard against which all other outdoor-industry awards are measured.

Author: Hal W. Hendrick
Publisher: CRC Press
ISBN: 1410612414
Category : Technology & Engineering
Languages : en
Pages : 415

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Book Description
This book's primary objective is to provide a comprehensive coverage of ergonomics in overall work system analysis and design. It provides a summary of the historical development of macroergonomics. It explains how an understanding of macroergonomics can lead to improvements in such things as reducing work-related lost time accidents; and describes the methods and tools used in work system analysis and design. Throughout, the integrating theme is that the full potential of an organization--in terms of productivity, safety, health, and Quality of Work Life (QWL)--can't be met unless the overall work system is designed to conform with the characteristics of its technology, personnel subsystem, and the external environment upon which it depends for its survival and success. Using a sociotechnical systems approach, this text discusses the application of macroergonomics to training system development, hazard management, technology transfer, large scale organizational change projects, office and factory automation, community planning and development, and job design. For each of these applications, actual case examples will be included. The book will appeal to teachers of introductory human factors/ergonomics courses as a supplemental text or as the primary text for a course fully devoted to macroergonomics. In addition, it should also appeal to practicing ergonomists internationally as a must add to their personal professional libraries.

Author: Institute of Medicine
Publisher: National Academies Press
ISBN: 0309132991
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 510

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Book Description
Every year workers' low-back, hand, and arm problems lead to time away from jobs and reduce the nation's economic productivity. The connection of these problems to workplace activities-from carrying boxes to lifting patients to pounding computer keyboards-is the subject of major disagreements among workers, employers, advocacy groups, and researchers. Musculoskeletal Disorders and the Workplace examines the scientific basis for connecting musculoskeletal disorders with the workplace, considering people, job tasks, and work environments. A multidisciplinary panel draws conclusions about the likelihood of causal links and the effectiveness of various intervention strategies. The panel also offers recommendations for what actions can be considered on the basis of current information and for closing information gaps. This book presents the latest information on the prevalence, incidence, and costs of musculoskeletal disorders and identifies factors that influence injury reporting. It reviews the broad scope of evidence: epidemiological studies of physical and psychosocial variables, basic biology, biomechanics, and physical and behavioral responses to stress. Given the magnitude of the problem-approximately 1 million people miss some work each year-and the current trends in workplace practices, this volume will be a must for advocates for workplace health, policy makers, employers, employees, medical professionals, engineers, lawyers, and labor officials.

Author: Gavriel Salvendy
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 1118129083
Category : Technology & Engineering
Languages : en
Pages : 1754

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Book Description
The fourth edition of the Handbook of Human Factors and Ergonomics has been completely revised and updated. This includes all existing third edition chapters plus new chapters written to cover new areas. These include the following subjects: Managing low-back disorder risk in the workplace Online interactivity Neuroergonomics Office ergonomics Social networking HF&E in motor vehicle transportation User requirements Human factors and ergonomics in aviation Human factors in ambient intelligent environments As with the earlier editions, the main purpose of this handbook is to serve the needs of the human factors and ergonomics researchers, practitioners, and graduate students. Each chapter has a strong theory and scientific base, but is heavily focused on real world applications. As such, a significant number of case studies, examples, figures, and tables are included to aid in the understanding and application of the material covered.

Author: Stephen J. Guastello
Publisher: CRC Press
ISBN: 1466560096
Category : Computers
Languages : en
Pages : 504

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Book Description
Although still true to its original focus on the person–machine interface, the field of human factors psychology (ergonomics) has expanded to include stress research, accident analysis and prevention, and nonlinear dynamical systems theory (how systems change over time), human group dynamics, and environmental psychology. Reflecting new developments in the field, Human Factors Engineering and Ergonomics: A Systems Approach, Second Edition addresses a wide range of human factors and ergonomics principles found in conventional and twenty-first century technologies and environments. Based on the author’s thirty years of experience, the text emphasizes fundamental concepts, systems thinking, the changing nature of the person-machine interface, and the dynamics of systems as they change over time. See What’s New in the Second Edition: Developments in working memory, degrees of freedom in cognitive processes, subjective workload, decision-making, and situation awareness Updated information on cognitive workload and fatigue Additional principles for HFE, networks, multiple person-machine systems, and human-robot swarms Accident analysis and prevention includes resilience, new developments in safety climate, and an update to the inventory of accident prevention techniques and their relative effectiveness Problems in "big data" mining Psychomotor control and its relevance to human-robot systems Navigation in real-world environment Trust in automation and augmented cognition Computer technology permeates every aspect of the human–machine system, and has only become more ubiquitous since the previous edition. The systems are becoming more complex, so it should stand to reason that theories need to evolve to cope with the new sources of complexity. While many books cover traditional topics and theory, they to not focus on the practical problems students will face in the future. With broad coverage that ranges from physical ergonomics to cognitive aspects of human-machine interaction and includes dynamic approaches to system failure, this book increases the number of methods and analytical tools that are available for the human factors researcher.

Author: Cecilia Berlin
Publisher: Ubiquity Press
ISBN: 1911529137
Category : Technology & Engineering
Languages : en
Pages : 297

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Book Description
Production ergonomics – the science and practice of designing industrial workplaces to optimize human well-being and system performance – is a complex challenge for a designer. Humans are a valuable and flexible resource in any system of creation, and as long as they stay healthy, alert and motivated, they perform well and also become more competent over time, which increases their value as a resource. However, if a system designer is not mindful or aware of the many threats to health and system performance that may emerge, the end result may include inefficiency, productivity losses, low working morale, injuries and sick-leave. To help budding system designers and production engineers tackle these design challenges holistically, this book offers a multi-faceted orientation in the prerequisites for healthy and effective human work. We will cover physical, cognitive and organizational aspects of ergonomics, and provide both the individual human perspective and that of groups and populations, ending up with a look at global challenges that require workplaces to become more socially and economically sustainable. This book is written to give you a warm welcome to the subject, and to provide a solid foundation for improving industrial workplaces to attract and retain healthy and productive staff in the long run.

Author: Thomas Reilly
Publisher: Human Kinetics
ISBN: 1492582344
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 414

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Book Description
Ergonomics in Sport and Physical Activity: Enhancing Performance and Improving Safety is also available as an e-book. The e-book is available at a reduced price and allows readers to highlight and take notes throughout the text. When purchased through the Human Kinetics site, access to the e-book is immediately granted when the order is received.Ergonomics in Sport and Physical Activity: Enhancing Performance and Improving Safety is the first text to provide an in-depth discussion of how the principles of ergonomics can be applied in the context of sport and other physical activities to reduce injury and improve performance. The textblends concepts from biomechanics, physiology, and psychology as it shows how ergonomics is applied to physical activity. This comprehensive text outlines methods for assessing risk in and procedures for dealing with stress, eliminating hazards, and evaluating challenges posed in specific work or sport environments. It discusses issues such as the design of effective equipment, clothing, and playing surfaces; methods of assessing risk in situations; and staying within appropriate training levels to reduce fatigue and avoid overtraining. The text not only examines sport ergonomics but also discusses ergonomic considerations for physically active special populations. Ergonomics in Sport and Physical Activity explains what ergonomics is, how ergonomists solve practical problems in the workplace, and how principles of ergonomics are applied in the context of sport and other physical activities when solving practical problems related to human characteristics and capabilities. The text shows readers how to improve performance, achieve optimal efficiency, enhance comfort, and reduce injuries by exploring topics such as these: Essential concepts, terms, and principles of ergonomics and how these relate to physical activity Physical properties of the body and the factors limiting performance Interactions between the individual, the task, and the environment Injury risk factors in relation to body mechanics in various physical activities Injury prevention and individual protection in the review of sports equipment and sports environments Comfort, efficiency, safety, and details of systems criteria in equipment design This research-based text uses numerous practical examples, figures, charts, and graphs to bring the material to life. In addition, descriptions of technological advances show where we have been and how technology has advanced the field. Through the book’s discussion of the various stressors and adaptive mechanisms, readers will learn how to cope with various environmental conditions. They will also learn how various training modes can be used to alter sport-specific capabilities and enhance performance. Presenting a wide range of approaches, theoretical models, and analytical techniques, Ergonomics in Sport and Physical Activity: Enhancing Performance and Improving Safety illustrates the potential for ergonomics to be extended across recreation, competitive sport, and physically active work environments. Bridging the gap between ergonomics and exercise science, this unique text will assist both health care and exercise professionals in developing an improved awareness of how human capabilities are best matched to physical activities.

Author: Mark R. Lehto
Publisher: CRC Press
ISBN: 1410615464
Category : Technology & Engineering
Languages : en
Pages : 996

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Book Description
Emphasizing customer oriented design and operation, Introduction to Human Factors and Ergonomics for Engineers explores the behavioral, physical, and mathematical foundations of the discipline and how to apply them to improve the human, societal, and economic well being of systems and organizations. The book discusses product design, such as tools,

Author: K. Murrell
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 9400958781
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 520

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Book Description
Until quite recently conditions in industry were often rough. Long hours were worked in insanitary and murky workshops, often with little regard to the effects upon the workpeople who were considered to be expendable. Now, however, these adverse conditions have been recognized and so remedied that there remains little in industrial conditions to disturb the public conscience. This does not mean that conditions of work in office or factory are perfect. The obvious and dramatic abuses of the human frame may have gone, but in their place have arisen stresses and strains which, taking effect only in the long term, are generally undramatic and often unrecognized. They exist none the less. No organized effort to study the effect of working conditions on man's performance was made until the end of World War I, when the Industrial Fatigue Research Board was set up. For the first time, men trained in the human sciences entered industry to study men at work. They made con tributions which set a new standard of scientific investigation into human performance and allowed executive action on the basis of evidence rather than of hunch. The Board's work differed from the contribution of Gilbreth in America in that the principles of Motion Study which he developed were, to a large extent, based on intelligent observation rather than controlled experiment. During the 1920S the National Institute of Industrial Psychology was founded and there was close collaboration between it and the I.F.R.B.