In tunnels, roadside auditory warnings provide an important safety communication channel for drivers. However, warnings transmitted at the intended volume may not remain clear when reaching drivers. This study examined the effects of broadcast voice, volume, and ambient noise on warning detection, reaction time, speech intelligibility, comprehension, listening effort, and behavioural intention using an audiovisual simulation based on in-situ tunnel recordings. Results showed that the female voice used in this study was associated with better warning detection and speech intelligibility than the male voice. Higher broadcast volume mainly improved detection, whereas high ambient noise reduced speech intelligibility. Speech intelligibility remained low overall and was strongly associated with information comprehension. Higher comprehension was also relevant to higher behavioural intention. Listening effort showed no consistent association with comprehension or behavioural intention. These findings highlight speech recognition as a major limitation and support driver-level evaluation of tunnel warnings.

The construction industry continues to experience high rates of occupational injuries, with slips, trips and falls (STFs) being the main causes. This study reviewed the current research on construction STFs and identified key influencing factors. A bibliometric analysis of 346 papers (2016-2025) revealed remarkable growth in this research area. Keyword analysis highlighted safety management, fall prevention and risk assessment as the main research focuses. A scoping review of 82 relevant papers was conducted to develop a theoretical framework that organises the factors contributing to STFs among construction workers into human, task, machine and management factors. Management influences the human, task and machine factors, which directly affect the occurrence of STFs.

Artificial intelligence has the potential to enhance risk assessment of work-related musculoskeletal disorders in office environments. This study externally validated previously developed machine learning models and evaluated the performance of simplified binary data inputs. Six models trained on data from 810 office workers were validated using an independent dataset of 74 globally recruited participants. Model performance across nine anatomical regions was assessed using F1-scores and AUC-ROC metrics. SHapley Additive exPlanations were used to interpret risk factor contributions, and model performance using ordinal Likert-scale inputs was compared with binary-transformed representations. Generalisability varied by anatomical region, with moderate performance for high-prevalence regions (neck and lower back) and reduced accuracy for low-prevalence regions. XGB showed moderate but comparatively stable performance across several anatomical regions. These findings highlight the need for region-specific validation and support the feasibility of simplified, interpretable, and scalable AI-based tools for practical ergonomic risk assessment in office environments.

While augmented reality head-up displays (AR-HUDs) are known to enhance forward collision warning (FCW) safety, the optimal design for highway scenarios remains unclear. This study evaluated three AR-HUD FCW designs, including spatial referencing (SR), scaling animation (SA), and static symbol (SS), against a no-warning baseline in a driving simulator experiment with 39 participants. Results showed that SS produced the fastest brake response, higher time-to-collision, and fewer collisions. SR demonstrated the most stable visual attention pattern, reflected by lower pupil diameter variability, saccade time ratio, and dwell time at the hazard area, and received the highest usability ratings. SA showed a moderate effect without achieving the response efficiency of SS or the visual attention of SR. These findings provide theoretical insights into how FCW visual representations influence driving performance and visual attention, offering design insights to mitigate rear-end collision risk and improve highway safety.

This paper proposes Activity-Based Accident Analysis (ABAA) as a methodological framework that integrates organisational accident analysis with the reconstruction of situated work activity. While systemic approaches have advanced the understanding of organisational accidents, they often provide limited methodological guidance for analysing activity in context. The study draws on an in-depth retrospective case of a process industry accident, combining documentary analysis, interviews, field observations, and technical process data. The analysis illustrates how ABAA can contribute to a more detailed understanding of accident dynamics by reconstructing the temporal sequence of events and identifying organisational and design-related conditions that were not highlighted in the official investigation. The findings suggest that integrating activity-based analysis with organisational perspectives may offer a promising avenue for enhancing accident investigation practices and supporting organisational learning.

Ergonomics research increasingly prioritises driver comfort in complex vibration environments for safety and health. The existing evaluation methods fail to reveal the nonlinear relationship between vibration and comfort, ignoring the interpretability. This study proposes an interpretability comfort evaluation method using a hierarchical double path attention network (HDPA-Net). First, the acceleration and comfort data of the seat floor, cushion and backrest are collected through the road test. Then, the vibration transfer model and path decoupling method are utilised to identify vibration-sensitive paths. Finally, combined with a deep-learning model for comfort evaluation. The results showed that the multi-axis coupling has a significant impact on the transmission path. The HDPA-Net can capture vibration characteristics, achieving a mean absolute error of 3.3073 within a 0-100 score range, below the 10% acceptance threshold of ergonomics experts. This provides a new method for comfort evaluation and has an important guiding value for ergonomic seat design.

The effects of two shoulder-support exoskeletons with different assistive mechanisms (soft vs. rigid design) on muscle activity were evaluated during representative shoulder postures in simulated laparoscopic surgery task. A convenience sample of 27 participants (17 males and 10 females) was recruited. Changes in shoulder muscle activity were evaluated, and subjective aspects related to exoskeleton use were documented. Both shoulder exoskeletons produced positive effects when compared with the control condition, the Hapo soft exoskeleton consistently reduced anterior deltoid activity across all evaluated shoulder postures and medial deltoid activity across four of the five representative posture configurations, while the Paexo rigid device reduced anterior deltoid activity primarily at higher shoulder elevations. Both exoskeletons achieved good usability scores. Future studies should evaluate these shoulder-support exoskeletons during live laparoscopic surgery.

Endoscopic procedures increase the risk of endoscopy-related musculoskeletal disorders (ErMSD), with high prevalence reported internationally; however, Australian data are limited. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of ErMSD among Australian endoscopists and identify associated risk factors and protective behaviours. A national online survey of credentialled endoscopists collected data on demographics, procedure type and volume, pain and injury history, consequences (including treatment and work modification), and prevention practices. Eighty-one endoscopists (73.8% surgeons, 25.0% gastroenterologists) participated. Overall, 61.7% reported current (29.6%) or previous (32.1%) ErMSD. Common injury sites included the thumbs/hands, lumbar and cervical spine. Higher weekly colonoscopy volume was significantly associated with ErMSD (p = 0.01). Symptoms were frequently exacerbated during or after procedures (80.9%), with over half reporting impacts on activities outside work (51.1%) or requiring formal treatment (57.4%). ErMSD is prevalent among Australian endoscopists and is associated with procedural volume, highlighting the need for targeted prevention strategies.

Cursor control becomes difficult in space-constrained environments, such as operating portable computers while wearing pressurised gloves. Flexible pressure sensorscan capture fingertip kinematic (centre of pressure, CoP) and force signals within confined spaces, offering a potential control method. In two experiments, we evaluated mappings that transformed kinematic and/or force signals into cursor movements. A hybrid mapping usingCoP displacement and peak force to control cursor velocity achieved the highest throughput. Compared with a commercial TrackPoint, the hybrid mapping achieved 63% of its throughput but yielded smoother trajectories, indicating a speed-stability trade-off. These findings demonstrate the potential of fingertip pressure for cursor control in constrained environments and the benefits of combining kinematic and force information in human-machine interaction when hand motion is limited.

This study investigated how recall-defined algorithm reliability and downtime risk, operationalised as downtime loss, influence trust through two experiments in which student participants completed simulated predictive maintenance (PdM) tasks under deterministic and uncertain risk conditions. Results showed that higher reliability increased trust attitude and shortened decision time across both experiments. It also reduced recommendation rejection under deterministic risk and in the exploratory analysis under uncertain risk. However, the effect of downtime risk varied: under deterministic conditions, higher downtime risk reduced trust behaviour without significantly affecting trust attitude; under uncertain conditions, the variance-based nominal risk manipulation did not reliably differentiate perceived risk and did not significantly affect trust-related outcomes, whereas experienced downtime losses were associated with lower trust attitude. These findings highlight the importance of improving PdM-relevant detection performance and effectively communicating risk and outcome information to support informed maintenance decisions and effective use of PdM decision-support systems.

This study aimed to improve and validate the accuracy of joint angles estimated using a mixture of uncalibrated cameras (MUC), an uncalibrated multi-view markerless three-dimensional motion capture system, through bidirectional long short-term memory (BiLSTM) based correction. Twelve male participants performed bricklaying, assembly, and parcel loading while marker-based and multi-view markerless motion capture data were recorded simultaneously. MUC-derived joint angles were corrected using a BiLSTM model trained against marker-based reference values. Representative RMSE reductions were 48.9° to 25.0° for shoulder abduction-adduction in bricklaying, 11.3° to 5.8° for elbow flexion in assembly, and RMSE from 40.0° to 16.7° for knee flexion in parcel loading. Pearson's correlation and ICC improved for several motions, while Bland-Altman analysis showed reduced fixed and proportional bias and narrower limits of agreement in selected motions. These findings support BiLSTM-based correction for industrial ergonomic assessment.

Despite advancements in automating observation-based ergonomics assessments, most automations still rely on a single underlying construct (e.g. posture). This fragmented approach, however, derogates from the integrated nature of traditional assessment methods. The few studies that consider multiple aspects do so through indirect or manual procedures. This paper studies a novel approach of automating ergonomics assessment, making use of the well-established European Assembly Worksheet (EAWS), incorporating both posture and load manipulation. To this end, it comparatively examines observation-based and automated calculations, using paper-based documents for the former, and inertial measurement units and smart glasses for the latter. The comparative results show a strong, significant correlation between automated and observation-based EAWS calculations (r = 0.74; p < 0.05 for an assembly task, r = 0.82; p < 0.01 for a palletising task). Additional subjective survey results deviate from the EAWS calculations, but are complementary in identifying effects not detected by it.

Given the increasing use of touch-screens, the impact of images of objects upon cursor positioning were examined. As objects may present compatible and conflicting cues for movement, we examined the influence of relevant and irrelevant cues on responses when pointing to images on touch-screens. An experiment (N = 24) examined leftwards or rightwards pointing movements to images of large or small cups with handles that could be compatible or incompatible for grasping and were depicted as full or empty. Handle compatibility only benefited response latencies for empty cups, and this effect was reversed for small cups. Kinematic analyses suggested movements were less efficient to images of cups with compatible handles. Aiming points varied with cup size and contents suggesting that handles influenced performance when they presented lower Indices of Difficulty (as per Fitts' law). Object characteristics can influence screen hot-spots, and this primarily occurs whilst the cursor is in motion.

Firefighters experience high cardiovascular strain, and inadequate cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) elevates health and performance risks. This scoping review evaluates field-based tests for estimating CRF via maximal oxygen uptake (VO2max) in fire services. PubMed and SPORTDiscus (1990-2025) were searched; of 140 records identified, 102 were screened and 14 included. Tests required documented criterion validity, a standardised protocol, and evidence of operational adoption. Protocols were appraised against five criteria: specificity, validity, reliability, practical implementation, and safety. The 20 m shuttle run offered the most favourable profile for department-wide monitoring, combining high validity, high test-retest reliability, minimal equipment, indoor feasibility, and scalable group testing. Treadmill and stairmill tests provide robust alternatives for individual assessment but are constrained by equipment and staffing. Submaximal tests show larger error. Standardising a field test with regular reassessment may support training control and early detection of decline.

Commercial crab fishing involves frequent bending on dynamic decks, posing for low-back overexertion and loss of balance. Passive back-support exoskeletons may reduce spinal loading, but their effects on postural stability during fishery-relevant tasks are unclear. Twenty-five men performed crab pot handling and crab sorting with and without exoskeletons (Apex, Laevo, and Ottobock) . Centre-of-pressure (COP) , perceived balance interference and range-of-motion (ROM) limitation were collected. During pot handling, COP metrics were largely unchanged across devices, with only small differences in regularity. During crab sorting, exoskeleton use, especially Apex, was associated with increased COP activity, whereas Laevo and Ottobock showed smaller, selective changes. Perceived balance interference was low, but perceived ROM limitation was moderate. Results highlight task-dependent stability effects and support fit-for-task selection and training for fisheries deployment.