Content area

Abstract

(1) Background: The safe execution of heavy machinery operations and high-risk construction tasks requires operators to manage multiple tasks, with a constant awareness of coworkers and hazards. With high demands on visual and auditory resources, vibrotactile feedback systems offer a solution to enhance awareness without overburdening vision or hearing. (2) Aim: This study evaluates the impact of vibrotactile feedback regarding proximity to hazards on multitasking performance and cognitive workload in order to support hazard awareness in a controlled task environment. (3) Method: Twenty-four participants performed a joystick-controlled navigation task and a concurrent mental spatial rotation task. Proximity to hazards in the navigation task was conveyed via different encodings of vibrotactile feedback: No Vibration, Intensity-Modulation, Pulse Duration, and Pulse Spacing. Performance metrics, including obstacle collisions, target hits, contact time, and accuracy, were assessed alongside perceived workload. (4) Results: Intensity-Modulated feedback reduced obstacle collisions and proximity time, while lowering workload, compared to No Vibration. No significant effects were found on spatial rotation accuracy, indicating that vibrotactile feedback effectively guides navigation and supports spatial awareness. (5) Conclusions: This study highlights the potential of vibrotactile feedback to improve navigation performance and hazard awareness, offering valuable insights into multimodal safety systems in high-demand environments.

Details

1009240
Business indexing term
Title
Exploring Vibrotactile Displays to Support Hazard Awareness in Multitasking Control Tasks for Heavy Machinery Work
Publication title
Safety; Basel
Volume
11
Issue
1
First page
26
Publication year
2025
Publication date
2025
Publisher
MDPI AG
Place of publication
Basel
Country of publication
Switzerland
Publication subject
e-ISSN
2313576X
Source type
Scholarly Journal
Language of publication
English
Document type
Journal Article
Publication history
 
 
Online publication date
2025-03-11
Milestone dates
2024-11-30 (Received); 2025-03-07 (Accepted)
Publication history
 
 
   First posting date
11 Mar 2025
ProQuest document ID
3181688886
Document URL
https://www.proquest.com/scholarly-journals/exploring-vibrotactile-displays-support-hazard/docview/3181688886/se-2?accountid=208611
Copyright
© 2025 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.
Last updated
2025-12-03
Database
ProQuest One Academic