A multidimensional valuation of the human perception of construction vibration

A A Noviyanti,J S Woodcock

doi:10.1088/1742-6596/1075/1/012044

Abstract

Previous studies have shown that annoyance due to vibration does not simply depend on the magnitude of vibration exposure. However, only little is known about the important features that contribute the human perception of vibration. This paper presents a study investigating seated subjects’ perception of construction induced groundborne vibration in the vertical direction with the method of multidimensional scaling. The investigation was conducted using a paired comparison subjective test. Sixteen subjects were asked about their perception of the annoyance and similarity of sixty-six pairs of vibration stimuli. Through non-metric multidimensional scaling analysis, it is presented that the perception of construction vibration activities are dependent on up to three perceptual dimensions: duration of the signal, vibration energy in the 31.5 Hz of ⅓ octave band, and the centre of mass of the frequency spectrum of the signals. A regression model was built from the relationship between the annoyance ratings and the objective descriptors revealed through the multidimensional scaling analysis. This model was found to describe 79% of the variance in the measured perceived annoyance ratings data with p-level < 0.01.

Highlights

Vibration can be sensed by human through the auditory, visual and nervous system
Summary This paper presents analysis of the results of paired comparison subjective test design to investigate the perception of construction vibration
Using the method of multidimensional scaling, the perception of construction vibration is influenced by three perceptual dimensions

Summary

Introduction

Vibration can be sensed by human through the auditory, visual and nervous system. The potential effects of vibration exposure depend on many factors, including the characteristics of the motion, the characteristics of the exposed person, activities of the exposed person and other aspects of the environment. Afterwards, study about a number of objective features of vibration exposure which can influence human response including the amplitude, direction, frequency content, duration, and envelope characteristics of the vibration was developed [5]. Another studies of the human perception of noise and vibration investigated about multidimensional phenomenon that can be explained by multiple objective parameters that establish a perceptual space, using a technique known as multidimensional scaling.

Results

Conclusion