The Department of Computer Science and Software Engineering at the College of Information Technology at the United Arab Emirates University cooperated with Tohoku University in Japan to study the importance of hearing, as a sensory signal that allows astronauts to navigate safely through space, avoiding the dangers of tripping that lead to severe injuries and even death.
The research team, led by Dr. Jose Berengueres, worked on studying records found from NASA’s investigation of the Apollo mission on the moon, and revealed that 27 falls and 21 stumbles occurred due to the difficulty of reading the terrain of the surrounding area, along with other factors, which confirmed the need To develop space suits, so that they are strong and flexible, allowing astronauts freedom of movement, and not hindering their sensory abilities or restricting their ability to perform some movements, especially in space missions destined for the moon, and soon to Mars.
The study measures the impact of hearing on a person’s ability to perceive, understand and remember spatial relationships. The researchers tested 14 participants to be able to determine the impact of limited hearing on a person’s ability to balance and move.
“The development of hearing through spacesuits is critical to the success of the space mission,” Jose said.
It is noteworthy that Dr. Jose’s team, which includes university student Maryam Al-Kuwaiti, previously worked on creating haptic feedback devices that are installed inside the shoes, to record information about the ground, and is still testing the effectiveness of placing a type of simple microphone inside the shoes as a cheaper, lighter and more sustainable option.
Although the research team has already begun conducting preliminary experiments with the microphones, it is seeking to conduct more experiments using a real spacesuit, with the aim of obtaining more realistic results.
• The study measures the extent to which hearing affects the human ability to perceive, understand and remember spatial relationships.
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