Final Activity Report Summary - PRE-WORK (Vision-based prevention of work-related disorders in computer users) The PRE-WORK project addressed the increasingly common problem of work-related health disorders, caused by long-term static computer use. Headaches, fatigue, blurred vision, eye strain, dry or irritated eyes, focusing difficulties, etc. are the most common symptoms. Those problems could be avoided by appropriate preventive measures, such as correct display setup, regular breaks and eye-muscle exercises, as proposed by the guidelines for safe operation of computers and prolonged sedentary work. Unfortunately, most computer users do not pay enough attention to guidelines and are not willing to change their working habits until they detect first signs of health issues. The main goal of our project was to design and implement a software tool for video-based monitoring of computer users behaviour. The software analysed users activity level and provided appropriate health-risk warnings, suggestions and exercises at the moment when they were actually needed. Only standard computer equipment should be used to ensure the software could be easily used by office workers and the general public. The proposed project integrated areas of computer vision, occupational medicine and interactive user interfaces. We firstly researched common workplace disorders and means to prevent them. We then decided to focus on eye activity and the importance of blinking so as to assess the general fatigue level of a person. New methods for the detection of eye blinks and the analysis of their properties were developed. Finally, a new measure for eye fatigue level was introduced. It compared current blink activity with prepared models of fatigued and non-fatigued behaviour. By observing the eye fatigue level, the monitoring software could quickly detect dangerous fatigue levels and start the appropriate preventive actions. The main project outcome was the BLITRA monitoring software which observed the computer user through a monitor-mounted webcam, analysed his eye blinking behaviour and tried to detect the onset of eye fatigue. In case fatigued behaviour was detected the user was alerted and provided with an option to start a set of simple interactive exercises that would help to relax his eye muscles. Software controlled exercises ensured that user activity was varied in intensity, speed and movement patterns, all without the need for special attention by the user. In the long run, such software was expected to encourage the use of relaxational exercises at the workplace and help the user learn how to perform preventive activities regularly. This could finally lead to safer computer work and lower rates of illness and health-related absence from work, within the European Union as well as worldwide.
