Evaluating Physiological Load of Workers with Wearable Sensors

The U.S. construction industry suffers from high rates of fatalities, injuries and illnesses. Non-fatal injuries and illnesses also lead to low construction productivity. Among various types of hazards construction workers are exposed to, excessive physiological loads have generated unnoticed but profound negative impacts on construction productivity and safety. This research aims at automatically detecting the physiological load of construction workers by using wearable sensors. The research utilized off-the-shelf bio-sensors that collect heart rate and energy expenditure in real time. Biomedical measurements were carried out during masonry wall construction. The collected data were analyzed statistically and compared with the subjective feedback from test participants. The authors introduced an index to quantify the level of physiological load for construction workers. The ultimate goal is to develop a prevention system that reduces fatalities and injuries, and increases construction productivity on construction sites by automatically monitoring workers’ physiological conditions in real time.