A Fragrance on Working Environment Characteristics in VDT Work

Abstract

Today we live in a highly technological and information-oriented society. Information access, including the Internet, has made noticeable developments and grown on a worldwide level. In such a social background, it is a widely known fact that major changes from the use of manpower dependence type work to VDT work is taking place in major businesses today. This paper describes some design factors for a reasonable working environment which supports a combination of man-machine for VDT work. The method of research notes "fragrance" as one factor to be explored when designing a working environment and considers the influence which this character has on productivity and workload from an experimental approach. The valuation index used in the experiment is obtained by measuring working efficiency and working quality in data input work, mental changes (stability)-recorded by an EEG (electroencephalograph) measurement, and workload degree determined by a survey of subjective symptoms. The results lead to a suitable fragrance sorts on working environment in the VDT work.