Transforming Ergonomics with Personalized Health and Intelligent Workplaces

Life expectancy is increasing, and we are all expected to work for longer as a result. A balance must be found between the demands of work and human capabilities, and this makes the prevention of workplace-related health problems more important than ever. Emerging technologies, such as smart textiles, wearable devices, and the Internet of Things have enabled the development of intelligent biomedical clothing and the integration of pervasive sensitive services into the environment, and together with ambient intelligence technology techniques and big data analytics, have fostered a proliferation of p-Health monitoring solutions. This book presents a collection of the most significant challenges and advances in the field of intelligent workspaces and personalized ergonomics, bringing together the most relevant results of various international research projects. The book is organized into three main sections: Personalized Ergonomics, which explores the need for practical and reliable risk assessment methods for the prevention of musculoskeletal disorders and the enhancement of the workplace; Pervasive Technology for Intelligent Workplaces, which identifies the opportunities and challenges of technology-based interventions and the security and privacy issues of the smart workplace; and Data Warehouse Governance and Analytics. The book concludes with a chapter on lessons learnt. The transformation of the working environment into a healthy and intelligent space will not only support ergonomists, employees and employers, but may also be the solution to the sustainability of our current social welfare systems, and the book will be of interest to all those concerned with workplace health.