Evaluation of the Usability of Office Chair Controls

Objective: The purpose of this study is to conduct an experiment to evaluate the usability of the controls performing seven adjustment functions of office chairs.<br/>Background: Although office chairs are a type of furniture, they are equipped with numerous adjustment functions, such as seat and backrest adjustments, which can be tailored to an individual's body size and posture. However, many users are either unaware of these adjustment functions or do not know how to operate them correctly, resulting in improper usage.<br/>Method: We conducted a usability evaluation on two office chairs: one with improved control usability and another for comparison. Fifteen participants operated seven functions on each chair, and we measured the completion time and the number of errors for each task.<br/>Results: The results of the experiment demonstrated improved usability of the office chair control mechanism developed for this study compared to the comparison chair. Significant usability improvements of office chair controls were observed, particularly in seat forwarding, armrest adjustment, and lumbar support adjustment.<br/>Conclusion: In the past, evaluations of office chairs have mainly focused on standards and specifications or body pressure distribution, with little research on the usability of control mechanisms. This study has highlighted the importance of the usability of chair controls and contributed to establishing methods for evaluating the usability of office chair controls.<br/>Application: This study can serve as a reference for the design of control mechanisms to improve the usability of chair controls in the future.