Neuroergonomic Assessment of Wheelchair Control in Real World Environments with both Healthy and Clinical Populations

摘要 神经工效学是一个研究人脑与行为相关的新兴领域 在自然环境和日常环境中的表现。神经人体工程学研究旨在扩大我们的 对人类感知、认知和运动功能的神经机制的理解 专注于现实世界的背景。传统的神经成像设备，如功能磁共振成像 (功能磁共振成像)可能昂贵、不切实际，而且不适合大规模部署以探索、利用和进一步 了解复杂的运动任务，尤其是在残疾群体中。因此，功能性近红外 光谱学(FNIRS)，一种新兴的可穿戴式神经成像技术，测量相似的大脑皮层 血流动力学反应与fMRI相同，但带有便携、更容易接触和相对成本较低的传感器，提供了 独一无二的机会探索实验室外的认知功能，包括轮椅控制。认知 工作量是指任务对大脑有限的处理能力的要求。通常当一个人的 处理能力达到极限时，会出现性能崩溃和错误。在患有癌症的人中 残疾、表现错误可能会导致严重伤害、行为改变，并影响平等和自主。 无障碍的补充方法涉及新一代辅助设备接口，包括电源- 辅助功能，可减少认知和体力工作负荷，提高安全性、自主性 社会健康和生活质量。然而，目前我们对认知和身体的大部分理解 工作量仅限于轮椅控制方面的主观评估。 这项提议是此类计划中的第一项，使用新一代超便携大脑监测传感器来 探索和了解活动期间个体和环境的认知工作负荷交互作用 轮椅控制，最终导致制定独特的方法和对 当前接受的标准和移动设备。目标1将包括便携式大脑和身体测量 (皮质血流动力学氧合变化与fNIRS，心率与心电，身体运动与中枢 加速度计)，以及自我报告的评估，以评估活动轮椅期间的脑力和体力 在美国残疾人协会规定的环境内进行控制。我们在目标2进一步扩张，在那里我们 将评估动力辅助设备的神经人体工学设计，以表征互补性 移动界面可能会影响用户体验和环境参与度。 这项研究将开发一个框架，以全面分析用户的认知，情感和 未来辅助设备的物理交互，以改善个性化、移动性和康复。这 这项研究将有助于了解操作员-环境-机器相互作用对脑力工作负荷的影响 能力不同的用户。此外，它还将提供一种客观评估操作员交互的新方法 用于研究和开发现有的和新的移动设备。

Abstract Neuroergonomics is an emerging field that investigates the human brain in relation to behavioral performance in natural environments and everyday settings. Neuroergonomics research aims to expand our understanding of the neural mechanisms underlying human perceptual, cognitive, and motor functioning with a focus on real-world contexts. Traditional neuroimaging devices such as Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) can be expensive, impractical, and ill-suited for large scale deployment to explore, utilize and further understand complex motor tasks, particularly within communities of disability. Therefore, functional Near Infrared Spectroscopy (fNIRS), an emerging wearable neuroimaging technique that measures the similar cortical hemodynamic response as in fMRI but with portable, more accessible and relatively low cost sensors, offers a unique opportunity to explore the cognitive function out of the laboratory, including wheelchair control. Cognitive workload refers to the task demands on the limited processing capacity of the brain. Often when an individual’s processing capacity reaches its limit, performance breakdown and errors will occur. Among people with disabilities, performance errors can lead to serious injury, behavioral change, and impact equality and autonomy. Complementary approaches to accessibility involve new generation assistive device interfaces, including power- assist features, which can provide reductions in cognitive and physical workload, for improved safety, autonomy, social-wellness, and quality of life. However, currently much of our understanding of cognitive and physical workload is limited to subjective assessments in the context of wheelchair control. This proposal is the first of its kind, using new generation ultra-portable brain monitoring sensors to explore and understand the cognitive workload interactions of the individual and the environment during active wheelchair control, ultimately leading to the development of unique methodology and objective assessments of currently accepted standards and mobility devices. Aim 1 will incorporate portable brain and body measurements (cortical hemodynamic oxygenation changes with fNIRS, heart rate with ECG, body movement with a central accelerometer), and self-reported assessments to evaluate mental and physical effort during active wheelchair control within American Disability Association regulated environments. We expand further in Aim 2, where we will assess the neuroergonomic design of Power-Assisted Devices, in order to characterize how complementary mobility interfaces can impact user experience and environmental engagement. This study will develop a framework for a comprehensive analysis of user’s cognitive, affective and physical interaction for future assistive devices to improve personalization, mobility, and rehabilitation. This study will contribute to understanding the operator-environmental-machine interactions on mental workload of differently-abled users. Furthermore, it will provide a new approach to objectively assess operator interactions for the research and development of current and new mobility devices.