PERFORMANCE OF 40- TO 50-YEAR-OLD SUBJECTS ON A RADAR MONITORING TASK: THE EFFECTS OF WEARING BIFOCAL GLASSES AND INTERPOLATED REST PERIODS ON TARGET DETECTION TIME

The present study examined the effects of wearing bifocal glasses and interpolated rest periods on the performance of 40- to 50-year old subjects on a radar monitoring task. The visual display was designed to resemble an air traffic control radar display containing computer-generated alphanumeric symbols. Forty men and women were divided into equal-sized groups, with each group consisting of one of the four possible combinations of bifocal/no-bifocal and rest/no-rest conditions. All subjects were tested over a 2-hour session. Rest periods (1 5-minute break every 30 minutes) significantly reduced the performance decrement of 40- to 50-year old subjects, bringing performance to a level approximating that of 18- to 29-year old subjects without rest periods. The wearing of bifocal glasses did not contribute to visual strain or somatic discomfort.

• Record URL:
  http://www.faa.gov/data_research/research/med_humanfacs/oamtechreports/1980s/1982/198216/
• 
• Corporate Authors:

  Federal Aviation Administration

  Office of Aerospace Medicine, 800 Independence Avenue, SW
  Washington, DC  United States  20591
• Authors:
  • Thackray, R I
  • Touchstone, R M
• Publication Date: 1982-4

Language

• English

Media Info

• Features: Figures; References;
• Pagination: 11 p.

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Age; Eyeglasses; Human subject testing; Monitoring; Radar air traffic control; Radar displays; Radar targets; Rest periods; Vigilance
• Uncontrolled Terms: Bifocal eyeglasses
• Subject Areas: Aviation; Operations and Traffic Management; Safety and Human Factors;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00964719
• Record Type: Publication
• Report/Paper Numbers: FAA-AM-82-16
• Files: TRIS, USDOT
• Created Date: Oct 19 2003 12:00AM