Collective Stress Visualization Enabled by Smart Cushions for Office Chairs

This paper explores the possibility of combining sensory data of multiple individuals into a collective visualization. Using a smart cushion for office chairs that collects several stress-related parameters, namely: heart rate, respiratory rate, and heart-rate variability, individuals’ data can be aggregated into a collective stress visualization. Three different visualizations are designed which abstractly, grouped and aggregated, and metaphorically visualize the collective stress. Additionally, two more visualizations are explored for the ‘new way of working’ during the COVID-19 epidemic, where people work remotely and from the office. Through expert and user interviews, these visualizations are evaluated. Additionally, there is researched on whether measured heart-rate variability can predict perceived stress levels. The results found an inversed correlation than hypothesized.