Abstract
Purpose
This study aimed to investigate the effect of whole-body vibration and ambient lighting, as well as their combined effect on human discomfort, heart rate, and reaction time in laboratory conditions.
Methods
44 men were recruited with an average age of 25.4 ± 1.9 years. Each participant was subjected to 12 experimental steps, each step lasting five minutes for four different vibration accelerations in X, Y, and Z axes at a fixed frequency; three different lighting intensities of 50, 500, and 1000 lx were also considered. At each step, a visual computerized reaction test was taken from subjects and their heart rate recorded by pulse oximeter. In addition, the discomfort rate of subjects was measured using Borg scale.
Results
Increasing vibration acceleration significantly increased the discomfort rate and heart beat but not the reaction time. Lack of lighting caused more discomfort in the subjects, but there was no significant correlation between lighting intensity with heart rate and reaction time. The results also showed that the combined effect of vibration and lighting had no significant effect on any of the discomfort, heart rate, and reaction time variables.
Conclusions
Whole-body vibration is an important factor in the development of human subjective and physiological reactions compared to lighting. Therefore, consideration of the level of vibration to which an individual is exposed in workplaces subject to vibration plays an important role in reducing the level of human discomfort, but its interaction with ambient lighting does not have a significant effect on human subjective and physiological responses.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Aries MM (2005) Human lighting demands: healthy lighting in an office environment. Technische Universiteit Eindhoven, Eindhoven. http://repository.tue.nl/594257
Banbury JR, Schmit VP, Gibson CP, Whitfield FB (1987) Visual perception of direct-view and collimated displays under vibration. Displays 8(1):3–16. https://doi.org/10.1016/0141-9382(87)90002-3
Basri B, Griffin MJ (2013) Predicting discomfort from whole-body vertical vibration when sitting with an inclined backrest. Appl Ergon 44(3):423–434. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apergo.2012.10.006
Bhalchandra J (2008) Development of continuous subjective and physiological assessment techniques for the determination of discomfort and activity interference in transportation systems. Dissertation of Master of Technology
Bhiwapurkar MK, Saran VH, Harsha SP (2011) Objective and subjective responses of seated subjects while reading Hindi newspaper under multi axis whole-body vibration. Int J Ind Ergon 41(6):625–633. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ergon.2011.06.004
Bobick TG, Unger RL, Gallagher S, Doyle-Coombs DM (1988) Physiological responses and subjective discomfort of simulated whole-body vibration from a mobile underground mining machine. Proc Hum Factors Soc Annu Meet 32(11):719–723. https://doi.org/10.1518/107118188786762559
Borg G (1998) Borg’s perceived exertion and pain scales. Hum Kinet
Edwards C (2015) Lighting levels for isolated intersections: leading to safety improvements (MN/RC 2015-05). Retrieved from Minnesota Department of Transportation, Research Services and Library
El Falou W, Duchene J, Grabisch M, Hewson D, Langeron Y, Lino F (2003) Evaluation of driver discomfort during long-duration car driving. Appl Ergon 34(3):249–255. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0003-6870(03)00011-5
Griffin MJ (1996) Handbook of human vibration. Academic Press, London
Guignard JC (1972) Aeromedical aspects of vibration and noise, Part 2. Vibration (AGARD-AG-151), pp 114–203
Jazani RK, Saremi M, Kavousi A, Monazam MR, Abedi M (2012) The effect of whole-body vibration on vehicle driver’s reaction time and mental and physiological workload. J Army Univ Med Sci 10(4):278–284
Kang SR, Min J-Y, Yu C, Kwon T-K (2017) Effect of whole body vibration on lactate level recovery and heart rate recovery in rest after intense exercise. Technol Health Care 25(S1):115–123. https://doi.org/10.3233/thc-171313
Kittusamy NK, Buchholz B (2004) Whole-body vibration and postural stress among operators of construction equipment: a literature review. J Saf Res 35(3):255–261. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsr.2004.03.014
Kumar V, Saran VH (2014) Influence of reading format on reading activity under uniaxial whole body vibration. Int J Ind Ergon 44(4):520–527. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ergon.2014.05.004
Mansfield NJ (2004) Human response to vibration. Taylor & Francis, Boca Raton
Mansfield N, Sammonds G, Nguyen L (2015) Driver discomfort in vehicle seats—effect of changing road conditions and seat foam composition. Appl Ergon 50:153–159. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apergo.2015.03.010
Mulder M, Abbink DA (2016) Subjective perception of discomfort due to vehicle vibrations in the sagittal plane. IFAC Pap OnLine 49(19):494–499. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ifacol.2016.10.639
Newell GS, Mansfield NJ (2008) Evaluation of reaction time performance and subjective workload during whole-body vibration exposure while seated in upright and twisted postures with and without armrests. Int J Ind Ergon 38(5–6):499–508. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ergon.2007.08.018
Oborne DJ (1983) Whole-body vibration and International Standard ISO 2631: a critique. Hum Factors 25(1):55–69. https://doi.org/10.1177/001872088302500106 doi
Rom WN, Markowitz SB (2007) Environmental and occupational medicine. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, Philadelphia
Schust M, Blüthner R, Seidel H (2006) Examination of perceptions (intensity, seat comfort, effort) and reaction times (brake and accelerator) during low-frequency vibration in x- or y-direction and biaxial (xy-) vibration of driver seats with activated and deactivated suspension. J Sound Vib 298(3):606–626. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsv.2006.06.029
Shibata N (2015) Subjective response of standing persons exposed to fore-aft, lateral and vertical whole-body vibration. Int J Ind Ergon 49:116–123. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ergon.2015.01.012
Shin JY, Yun GY, Kim JT (2012) View types and luminance effects on discomfort glare assessment from windows. Energy Build 46:139–145. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enbuild.2011.10.036
Torvinen S, Kannus P, Sievanen H, Jarvinen TA, Pasanen M, Kontulainen S, Vuori I (2002) Effect of four-month vertical whole body vibration on performance and balance. Med Sci Sports Exerc 34(9):1523–1528
Wang L, Zhao M, Ma J, Tian S, Xiang P, Yao W, Fan Y (2014) Effect of combining traction and vibration on back muscles, heart rate and blood pressure. Med Eng Phys 36(11):1443–1448. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.medengphy.2014.08.008
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to express their gratitude to the students from the School of Health for contributing to the project. They also thank Tehran University of Medical Sciences (TUMS) who provided financial and scientific support for this research.
Funding
This study was funded by Grants from the Tehran University of Medical Sciences (TUMS) (Grant no.: 91-03-101-18152).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Conflict of interest
The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.
Ethical approval
All procedures involving human participants were approved for human subject protection by the Ethics Committee of Tehran University of Medical Sciences.
Informed consent
Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Monazzam, M.R., Shoja, E., Zakerian, S.A. et al. Combined effect of whole-body vibration and ambient lighting on human discomfort, heart rate, and reaction time. Int Arch Occup Environ Health 91, 537–545 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00420-018-1301-z
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00420-018-1301-z