Being in Control of Noise Levels Improves the Perception of Airplane Seat Comfort

The aviation industry is constantly making compromises when designing comfortable airplane cabins. Providing passengers with a pleasant acoustic environment without adding weight to the cabin structure is a field of tension that challenges cabin interior designers. The aim of this study was to investigate whether noise levels affect the comfort...

Designing a shaped seat-pan cushion to improve postural (dis)comfort reducing pressure distribution and increasing contact area at the interface

Remaining seated for extended periods increases the risk health issues and discomfort perception. Consequently, the seat-pan design is crucial and could be mainly influenced by two factors: pressure distribution and seat contour. For seat pan discomfort, the lower average pressure is accompanied by less discomfort. Moreover, a seat contour...

Introduction to the special issue on comfort: A review of 26 papers from the International Comfort Congress 2019

Various aspects related to comfort are described in this special issue. Some papers are focused on the environment, like smell, temperature, light, acoustics, space and some on an artefact touching the human, like the floor angle, the seat, a bed and light. However, in this special issue also topics like modelling and behavior get more...

Objective comparison of two cushions: pressure distribution and postural perceived discomfort

Designing seats is crucial not only for health issues but also for the (dis)comfort perception. The seat pan design could be mainly influenced by two factors: pressure distribution and seat contour. For seat pan discomfort, the lower average pressure is accompanied by less discomfort. Moreover, a seat contour with a large contact area is...

Discomfort Threshold Evaluation for Hand and Elbow Regions: A Basis for Hand-Held Device Design

This study aimed to analyse the discomfort threshold (that could be linked to sensitivity or sensation) of different regions in hand and elbow to support hand-held devices' design. Indeed, there are no studies regarding the hand and elbow discomfort threshold or sensitivity. To overcome these literature gaps, the discomfort threshold of hand...

PCQ: Preferred Comfort Questionnaires for product design

BACKGROUND: Selecting the most suitable questionnaire(s) in comfort research for product design is always a challenge, even for experienced researchers. OBJECTIVE: The objective of this research is to create a list of Preferred Comfort Questionnaires (PCQ) for product design to help researchers in the selection of questionnaires for comfort...

Towards comfortable communication in future vehicles

This research aims to study the effect of seat and/or backrest rotation on comfort and quality of conversation. Different sitting arrangements were tested to study the effect of the seat layout on: 1) (dis)comfort experience; 2) conversation quality and 3) postures. Two seats were arranged in different angles (0° 45° 90° and 180°) at the same...