User:Lewiscatton/HILAS Facial Temperature

=Facial Temperature= The goal was to investigate whether an infrared camera could be used during flight-simulation to provide a measure of the pilot’s workload. The rationale for this was that the pilot’s nose is expected to cool down under high workload conditions, due to deeper respiration and a change in parasympathetic innervation. Taking infrared pictures of the pilot’s face during flight could reveal this temperature drop. The measurement of facial temperature in the flight deck environment is relatively new, but the potential advantage is clear: with a thermal camera the recording is non-obtrusive.

=Output= We recorded infrared (thermal) images at regular intervals during the flight simulator experiment. The facial sensors recorded the temperature in real-time for a higher frequency data set. Both temperature measures were then analysed for variations in temperature relative to the task workload and person.

=Methodology= Facial temperature was measured with two different methodologies: an IR camera and sensors on the facial skin. Both methodologies were compared. It was expected that the IR camera was less intrusive while using the sensors was expected to be more accurate.

An additional methodology for facial temperature measurement was applied for comparison. Three small sensors were mounted on the facial skin, where the temperature was recorded in real-time. This might be more intrusive than the IR camera but it provided data with a higher frequency. The HILAS experiment aimed to demonstrate which methodology was preferable and under which circumstances.

=References=
 * HILAS Home Page
 * Flight Deck Technology Strand