Productivity Analysis of 6 Popular Ergonomic Mouse Designs

Webinar description:

The Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety estimates that the duration a computer user spends performing mousing tasks is three times greater than the duration that they are using the keyboard. Often called “mouse arm”, prolonged and/or intensive mousing can lead to pain and musculoskeletal disorders of the upper extremity. While a traditional computer mouse design must be operated in a posture with a pronated forearm, alternative ergonomic mouse designs can be used with varying degrees of supination, for operation in a more neutral posture. Increasing the amount of forearm supination has been shown to yield many benefits to the mouse user when compared to a traditional mouse, including decreased pain, lowered muscle activity, and increased productivity.

This webinar will disseminate the results of an independent study conducted by Jessica Cappelletto which compared productivity measures of 6 popular ergonomic mouse designs. Participants performed a Fitts’ Law aiming task using computer mice with 17º, 25º, 35-70º, 66º, 80º, and 90º of forearm supination. The study was conducted in accordance with ISO 9241-400:2007. Quantitative measures of throughput, movement time, and error rate were used to assess productivity and qualitative self-report measures were used to assess comfort, fatigue, accuracy, perceived effort, and ease of use. The results of this study will be discussed in the context of workstation design, usability, and comfort