Thirty years of ‘quiet eye’ with etafilcon A contact lenses

Frequent replacement contact lenses made from the etafilcon A hydrogel lens material were introduced onto the market over 30 years ago, and etafilcon A remains the most widely used hydrogel lens material today. Although the prescribing of silicone hydrogel lenses is increasing, millions of lens wearers globally have been wearing hydrogel lenses for many years and exhibit a physiologically-stable ‘quiet eye’, with a low profile of adverse events. Hydrogel lenses are demonstrated to maintain a low inflammatory response and infection risk profile during daily wear, which in the case of etafilcon A, may be related to its low modulus, and the naturally-protective, anti-microbial, non-denatured lysozyme absorbed into the lens from the tear fluid. Although improved corneal physiology from decreased hypoxia with silicone hydrogel lenses is well accepted, equivalent levels of corneal oxygenation are maintained during daily wear of low to medium powered hydrogel lenses, which do not impede the daily corneal de-swelling process, and do not induce clinically significant changes in ocular health. Therefore, hydrogel lenses remain an important alternative for daily wear in modern contact lens practice.     

Comfort design and optimization of direct expansion multi-connected radiant air conditioning based on 3D flow field simulation

The air conditioning method based on radiation heat exchange has the characteristics of small vertical temperature gradient, high thermal comfort and energy saving, and has become a hot spot of attention. The Fluent numerical simulation, the experiment in this paper studies the direct expansion multi-line radiant air conditioner under the artificially simulated climate environment in winter heating, summer cooling and dehumidification. The temperature difference of the radiation + fresh air mode at the same time indoors under heating conditions is less than 2.5 °C, and the time to reach the indoor set temperature of 24 °C is about 2–3 h. Under cooling conditions, the temperature difference of the radiation + fresh air mode at the same time in the room is about 0.5–2 °C, and the time to reach the indoor set temperature of 26 °C is about 1–3 h. In the fresh air mode, the indoor temperature difference and response time at the same time are slightly larger than the radiation + fresh air mode. The freezing and dehumidification effect of fresh air is obvious, the moisture content of dehumidifying fresh air is between 6.3 and 10.5 g/kg, and the dehumidification efficiency can reach 50%. Under the same artificial simulated climate environment, the consumption of the three modes is not much different. When the outdoor temperature in heating conditions is higher than 9 °C, the fresh air mode can get better, and the radiation + fresh air mode can achieve better comfort when running indoors under various conditions.     

亲子乐园空调送风方式的数值模拟研究

大型综合室内亲子乐园属于高大空间,设有游乐设施和游戏的特殊性使得对空间的舒适性要求一致,但是送风气流遇阻严重,室内存在较多气流死角,影响室内空气质量和儿童健康。因此其空调设计不仅需要考虑温度、风速的空间均匀度,还要考虑各点的空气龄和PMV-PPD指标。以天津某亲子乐园为研究对象,利用scSTREAM软件对适用于该房间的辐射供冷加新风、置换通风、混合通风三种空调方式的送风效果进行数值模拟分析,从流场的均匀性、人员的热舒适性等方面对模拟结果进行探讨,研究结果表明辐射供冷加新风方式的空间均匀性和PMV指标最佳,混合通风方式的空气龄最小。     

壁挂辐射供暖实验研究

利用壁挂式非金属电加热辐射采暖板供暖是一种新型的供暖方式。本文通过对一个采暖季中实验室实际供暖效果的实验研究，讨论了辐射板的技术性、适用性、舒适性、经济性及社会性，为辐射采暖板的设计、生产和安装使用提供了依据性资料。     

The relative influence of wind,sunlight and temperature on user comfort in urban outdoor spaces

This paper presents the development of a comfort index that measures adaptivity in outdoor spaces. Over a 9-month period 649 people were surveyed in three locations, in temperatures between 10 and 28 °C. An exploratory factor analysis develops a 15-item scale of comfort that includes measures of adaptivity: clothing, exposure time and seating location. The scale is regressed on physical measures: average instantaneous wind speed; maximum wind speed; mean-exposed radiant temperature; mean-shaded radiant temperature and ambient temperature. The results model the relative contributions of the microclimatic factors for the comfort in the outdoor space. Analyses suggest gustiness and wind speed are most important in determining user satisfaction. There is strong support for the theory that people actively adapt to microclimatic conditions.     

Effect of humidity on human comfort and productivity after step changes from warm and humid environment

Subjective experiments were conducted to evaluate the effects of humidity on human comfort and productivity under transient conditions from hot and humid environment to thermally neutral condition. Two climate chambers, “Chamber 1” and “Chamber 2”, adjoined each other were used for this study. Subjects were exposed to 30 °C/70%RH air in Chamber 1 for 15 min with 2.0 met of metabolic rate. Then they moved into Chamber 2, where 4 humidity conditions, 30, 40, 50 and 70%RH were examined. Air temperature was adjusted to keep SET* constant at 25.2 °C for all conditions. Subjects were exposed in Chamber 2 for 180 min performing 2 kinds of simulated office work.

Positive effects of low humidity on subjective pleasantness were found under transient condition at low humidity due to more evaporation from human body, while no significant difference in thermal sensation and humidity sensation among 4 relative humidity levels was obtained. Subjective performance was found to be at the same level under all conditions. However, subjects reported to be more tired at 70%RH after humidity step change.     

Sitting comfort and discomfort and the relationships with objective measures

The concepts of comfort and discomfort in sitting are under debate. There is no widely accepted definition, although it is beyond dispute that comfort and discomfort are feelings or emotions that are subjective in nature. Yet, beside several subjective methodologies, several objective methods (e.g. posture analysis, pressure measurements, electromyography (EMG) are in use to assess sitting comfort or discomfort. In the current paper a theoretical framework is presented, in which comfort and discomfort were defined and the hypothetical associations with underlying factors were indicated. Next, the literature was reviewed to determine the relationships between objective measures and subjective ratings of comfort and discomfort. Twenty-one studies were found in which simultaneous measures of an objective parameter and a subjective rating of comfort or discomfort were obtained. Pressure distribution appears to be the objective measure with the most clear association with the subjective ratings. For other variables, regarding spinal profile or muscle activity for instance, the reported associations are less clear and usually not statistically significant.     

Comprehension and acceptability of on-board traffic information: Beliefs and driving behaviour

Co-Drive on-board traffic information system is a complementary tool providing a dynamic management of transportation infrastructure and traffic as well as the diffusion of accurate real-time information about the road environment and motorists’ driving behaviour. The aim of this study was to examine drivers’ acceptability of Co-Drive by investigating the impact of traffic information provided via on-board display devices on motorists’ beliefs and behaviour.     

Muscle activity and cardiovascular response during computer-mouse work with and without memory demands

Computer-mouse work is characterized by repetitive movements combined with mental demands. The present purpose was to study how the body responded to simulated Computer Aided Design (CAD) work without memory demand and when a high short-term memory demand was introduced. Nine female subjects repetitively performed a task which involved 15 s of elevation of the right index and middle fingers followed by 6 s of rest. Every second time the fingers rested, the left index finger was required to type a six-figure number, either ‘123456’ (without memory demand) or a random number shown half a minute before (with memory demand). After 7 min of performing the task without memory demand, the memory demand was introduced and continued for 1 h. Introduction of memory demand resulted in increased heart rate (77 ← 84 beats/min), blood pressure (systolic 129 ← 140 mmHg; diastolic 72 ← 79 mmHg) and forearm extensor muscle activity (wrist, 2.7 ← 4.5% EMGmax; finger, 5.6 ← 7.5% EMGmax) and finger flexor muscle activity (0.7 1.2% EMGmax) indicating increased co-contraction. Hereafter, muscle activity and cardiovascular response tended to decrease. Self-reported stress and rating of perceived exertion (RPE) for the right shoulder increased throughout the period. Two additional sub-studies were inlcuded, which focused on adaptation to the physical load, showing a decrease in muscle activity and arousal, and reintroduction of the memory load, showing a lower response as compared to the initial response. The practical consequences of the findings suggest that job content should have variable mental demands.     

Ergonomics of ergonomic chairs: a study of adjustability features

The ease of adjustability of ‘ergonomic chairs’ was investigated. Twenty-six chairs were classified with respect to control features. There were 24 different types of control arrangements. Twenty subjects participated in a series of three experiments. The first experiment investigated what types of control mechanisms could be identified by naive users who had received no training or instruction in the use of control devices. The chairs were classified into five broad categories, and one chair from each category was tested. Two control design features, control discernibility and control feedback, significantly improved users' understanding of the adjustability controls. In the second experiment controls on 20 chairs were evaluated. Subjects were first trained in the operation of the controls for each chair; and then they performed a chair adjustability task. Six control evaluation criteria were used: reachability, force, ease of operation, preference, time to adjust, and number of control activations. Controls with long levers were preferred to controls with short levers or push buttons. The third experiment investigated the effect of the number of adjustability features on ratings of comfort and time for adjustment. Four chairs with different levels of control complexity were evaluated. The chair with the greatest number of adjustability controls took significantly greater time to adjust and was also judged to be the most comfortable.