Project ENTRAPon

Project description:

The research project ENTRAPon - Development of additional training elements for the prevention of tripping, slipping and falling accidents - is supported by the use of virtual reality using the example of companies in steel production and mail and parcel delivery and funded by the German Social Accident Insurance e. V. (DGUV). (DGUV).

In ENTRAPon, 70 volunteers from each of the two companies (DHL and HKM) who perform activities that pose a risk of falling are randomly assigned to two training groups of 25 employees (per group and company) and a control group of 20 employees (per group and company). Intervention group I receives treadmill-based training with unexpected mechanical gait disturbances, intervention group II receives treadmill-based training with VR-based gait disturbances. All groups also receive VR awareness training on SRS hazards. The control group does not receive treadmill-based training. All groups will undergo a course to measure change in gait stability before training (T1) and immediately after (T2) and after a further six month break (T3) and will also be interviewed about their subjective experience.

Project goals:

The ENTRAPon project aims to develop and evaluate a training package consisting of theoretical STOP awareness (training and VR-based warehouse simulator) and pertubation training for the prevention of trip, slip and fall accidents. The effect of the training package will be empirically investigated using a pretest-posttest design (with three measurements: one pretest, two posttest measurements) with two training groups and one control group. The sustainable effect of the training package will be verified by another measurement in the companies several weeks after the training. The effectiveness test also includes the processing of transfer tasks in VR-based realistic, dangerous SRS situations from familiar work environments. By using the training package and evaluating it, the effect with regard to prevention work in two different hazard areas is to be demonstrated: Postal delivery (DHL) and industrial manufacturing (steel company HKM).

Project partners:

The ENTRAPon consortium consists of the following partners:

•     Ruhr University Bochum
•     London South Bank University
•     Koblenz University of Applied Sciences

Advisory Board:

Prof. Dr. Vera Hagemann is a scientific member of the ENTRAPon project advisory board.

Detailed information on the ENTRAPon project can be found here.