The Impact of Sound Pressure Level, Loudness, Roughness, Sharpness, Articulation Index, Hand Vibration, and Seat Vibration on Subjective Comfort Perception of Tractor Drivers

Long-term exposure to high levels of vibration and noise can have detrimental effects on the health tractor drivers. This study aimed evaluate subjective comfort experienced by drivers operating large-horsepower tractors. A total 10 tractors sourced from 5 different manufacturers were subjected testing. The assessment encompassed three operational conditions, namely, idle, maximum torque, rated power. Objective measurements, including A-weighted sound pressure level (A-SPL), loudness, sharpness, roughness, articulation index (AI), hand vibration, seat collected. Additionally, evaluations carried out using a paired comparison test. To predict drivers, novel prediction model was developed employing simulated annealing (SA) algorithm optimize backpropagation neural network (BPNN). successfully achieved accurate predictions comfort, yielding error 4.4%. findings revealed that had more pronounced impact driver in environments with lower-amplitude noise, whereas high-decibel exerted masking effect vibration-induced discomfort. In conclusion, SA-BPNN model, utilizing A-SPL, AI, as objective parameters, effectively predicted discovery holds significant implications for manufacturers, who employ design cabs enhance comfort.