SafeVR plays on the acronym “we are safe” in reverse. We know from research that safety for employees and third parties is lower at night than during the day, and also when working long hours. Causality is probably complex, but sleep and circadian rhythms play a role.
The circadian rhythm promotes wakefulness during the day and sleepiness at night. The need for sleep increases the longer the waking period. Sufficient sleep is important to avoid fatigue and to maintain alertness. The degree of fatigue can increase if working hours limit or shift the time available for sleep, for example, when working at night and long work shifts or overtime.
In the SafeVR project, we investigate what happens to the body during night work and long working days. By measuring eye movements, we make objective measurements of cognitive function, fatigue, sleepiness and alertness. Using virtual reality (VR), we can simulate different work tasks. The goal of the project is to prevent errors and will determine whether objective measurements can contribute to this.
Project leader: Dagfinn Matre
More information is to be found on the Norwegian project page