A multidimensional approach to wearability assessment of an electronic wrist bracelet for the criminal justice system

Abstract

Electronic monitoring systems have been globally adopted to track criminals to ensure public safety efficiently. In this study, we aimed to assess the wearability of an electronic bracelet using multiple evaluation methods, including the evaluation of range of motion (ROM), air gap (AG), and clothing pressure (CP) at the wearer’s wrist, as well as self-scoring of subjective comfort (SC). We recruited eight Korean male participants (N = 8) who were in their 30 s and did not have any musculoskeletal problems at data collection. We compared the test results collected on the first day with those obtained after wearing the electronic wrist bracelet for 5 consecutive days. We also examined the differences between the normal-weight and overweight groups. Overall, the data evinced a decrease in the wrist ROM, AG, and SC, but an increase in the CP after it was worn for 5 days. And, the results were more observable in the overweight group, as compared to the normal-weight group. Furthermore, this study proposed a novel and effective assessment tool that could be used to measure the wearability of devices or systems intended to be worn on the human body—not only the electronic wrist bracelet for criminal monitoring but also popular commercial electronic bracelets for sportswear or health-related monitoring system.