Abstract
Background: Operating an aircraft is associated with a large mental workload; however, knowledge of the mental workload of ROV operators is limited. The purpose of this study was to establish a digital system for assessing the mental workload of remotely operated vehicle (ROV) operators using hemodynamic parameters, and compare results of different groups with different experience levels. Method: Forty-one trainee pilots performed flight tasks once daily for 5 consecutive days in a flight simulation. Forty-five pilots experienced pilots and 68 experienced drivers were also included. Hemodynamic responses were measured by functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS). Results: The median duration of peak oxyhemoglobin was 147.13 s (interquartile range [IQR] 21.97, 401.70 s) in the left brain and 180.74 s (IQR 34.37, 432.01 s) in the right brain in the experienced pilot group, and 184.42 s (IQR 3.41, 451.81 s) on day 5 in the left brain and 160.30 s (IQR 2.62, 528.20 s) in the right brain in the trainee group. Conclusion: Navigation training reduces peak oxyhemoglobin duration, and may potentially be used as a surrogate marker for mental workload of ROV operators. Peak oxyhemoglobin concentration during s task may allow development of a simplified scheme for optimizing flight performance based on the mental workload of a pilot.
Original language | English |
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Article number | 160 |
Journal | BMC Neurology |
Volume | 22 |
Issue number | 1 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - Apr 2022 |
Keywords
- Brain
- Deoxyhemoglobin
- Flight performance
- fNIRS
- Functional near-infrared spectroscopy
- Mental workload
- Oxyhemoglobin
- Remotely operated vehicle operators
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Clinical Neurology