Theses and Dissertations

Eboni Smith

Issuing Body

Mississippi State University

Advisor

Burch V, Reuben F.

Committee Member

Smith, Brian

Committee Member

Strawderman, Lesley

Committee Member

Chander, Harish

Date of Degree

12-13-2019

Original embargo terms

Worldwide

Document Type

Dissertation - Open Access

Major

Industrial and Systems Engineering

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy

College

James Worth Bagley College of Engineering

Department

Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering

Abstract

This dissertation is comprised of three different studies researching user perception of comfort when using wearable technology. The first study investigated the use of altered smart glasses to study comfort, preference, and performance while executing common logistical order picking and shipment putting tasks. The impact of design type (weighted front, side, or back) was investigated using comfort rating scales (CRS). There was no significant difference in device preference regardless of task type. Despite the side weighted arrangement being the most comfortable, the participants still felt uncomfortable. The second study explored modifying the weights to the six dimensions of the CRS to create a comfort score. There was a strong correlation between the weighted and unweighted comfort score. Participants identified Harm as the most important dimension. The results suggest that the participants valued importance did not make a difference in the comfort score. The final study examined the use of a wand scanner and two wearable devices to study comfort and performance while executing common logistical shipment putting tasks. The impact of the wearables was investigated using the CRS. Participants identified the ring and wand scanner to be the most comfortable and the glasses as the least comfortable device. The CRS scores showed that participants became more uncomfortable using the smart glasses over time during the completion of the putting task. These three studies provided insight for industry from a comfort perspective that will be helpful when trying to incorporate wearable technology in the work place.

URI

https://hdl.handle.net/11668/16448

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