In today’s increasingly competitive market environment, new packaging must meet more requirements than before to meet customer expectations. The packaging must meet not only functional and aesthetic requirements but also ergonomic requirements to ensure satisfying user experience. An important issue in ergonomic design is the identification of factors that lead to user comfort and discomfort. The packaging is a product that undergoes manual manipulation and given the various forms of packaging and it's opening and closing systems, they require using different grip types and movements. Using packaging that is not well designed can cause intense physical exertion and frustration for users. The subject of this paper is a review of methodologies for assessing the ergonomics of packaging products. Methodologies for evaluating the ergonomic characteristics of packaging provide a proposal for structuring the investigation. Also, it gives a proposal for the proper prioritization of a packaging problem that should be identified as the most dangerous risks for physical injuries or for causing stressful situations to users. First, it is necessary to gain a clear insight into how the users handle the packaging in order to create knowledge and a clear idea of what is useful or harmful in the existing packaging design and to find the potential for its improvement. There are various methods for studying, analyzing and evaluating user experience while using a packaging. Combining such methods with knowledge of the anatomical structure of the body and how it reacts to the load enables the creation of efficient and ergonomically designed packaging. This paper will present methodologies and guidelines for assessing and improving the ergonomic qualities of packaging. The aim of this paper is to define the key factors and most relevant methodologies for conducting successful ergonomic research.

No abstract

No abstract

The embossing process in graphic industry utilizes custom made dies to create raised or lowered permanent relief patterns according to the design. It can be combined with other print finishing embellishments, such as foil stamping or pearlescent coating, but the simplest version of this process, the blind embossing is also a very effective technique to create a distinguished and sophisticated look. The quality control of embossing features was done only visually for a long time, but in the recent years it became an important target for graphic instrument manufacturers focusing on the embossing depth, as one of the most important parameters for high quality processing. This analysis was aiming to investigate the applicability of a simple flatbed scanner and the developed image processing algorithm for embossing quality evaluation. The results of detailed visual assessment of all scanned paper samples and the obtained values of average greyscale difference (shadow-based contrast), showed that single-level embossed samples can be realistically digitalized using a simple flatbed scanner, as an image acquisition equipment. Additionally, the proposed image feature, the shadow-based contrast had increasing tendency by increasing the applied compression force, in general, suggesting that it has a potential as an objective measure for the deformation rate in the embossing quality evaluation. The obtained results gathered for different combinations of observed parameters (paper grade, basis weight, type of test elements on the embossing dies) with the optimal compression forces, implied that the shadow-based contrast could be used as a reference parameter to ensure adequate visibility of embossed elements by defining the minimum value of needed contrast.

The folding process is one of the most commonly used print finishing operations in graphical production. Therefore, surface damages on coated papers and paperboards, which are frequently appearing during this process, can have significant negative economic and environmental impacts. To reduce the adverse effects, fold crack resistance has become an active field of research. In the last decades, there were several computer-aided visual assessment methods introduced for fold-crack evaluation. These techniques were based on similar concepts of digital image analysis to quantitatively characterise the surface damage, but they had differences in utilisation as well as in the used image feature. In this study, fold crack distribution has been introduced as a new digital image feature for quality assessment. Fold crack distribution can be determined as a measure of crack scattering over the folding line. In this paper descriptive statistics, mean value, standard deviation and coefficient of variance have been used for qualitative characterisation of surface damage. The obtained results for mean value demonstrated increasing tendency by increasing the basis weight and had slightly lower value for samples in machine than cross direction. These results confirm the basic assumptions that on thicker substrates (i.e. on samples with higher basis weight) the cracks are larger, longer or grouped and that the folding process generates higher surface destruction is cross than machine direction. In the case of standard deviation, results suggest that in a case of varying mean values, crack distribution should be defined via coefficient of variation. Based on this analysis, the proposed approach to the calculation of crack distribution can serve as a new image characteristic for the qualitative measurement of the fold-crack resistance of coated papers.

It has been almost two decade since electronic formats entered mainstream in scientific paper publishing. PDF (portable document format) has become without any doubt most used electronic publishing format. Wide adoption of this format offered easy exchange of the information presented conventionally through text and images, which was widely adopted. On the other hand it has been little over a decade since 3D artwork, java script and SWF applications are supported by PDF, but adoption of all of these advanced features is quite low. With technological advancements augmented and virtual reality are becoming useful tools also. Same as in the case of PDF there is the problem, all across the board of scientific fields, of slow adoption of new Information communication technology ICT. This paper aims to explore and present some of the new ICT features that could help improve presentation of scientific results and also to illuminate the reasons they are rarely used in publications.

The subject of this paper was the investigation of the tactile and mechanical characteristics of printed specimens achieved using the manual technique of screen printing. The specimens are printed using ink enriched with a puff base. The puff base gives the print a three-dimensional shape and surface characteristics. This paper aims to investigate whether such prints can be used to improve the ergonomic characteristics of a product that undergoes in-hand manipulation. To determine the possibility of using a screen printing technique with a puff effect for ergonomic purposes, two experiments were performed. The first experiment involved subjective investigation of the tactile properties of the prints which are important since the end-users are people. The second experiment involved laboratory testing of the resistance of prints to mechanical rubbing (colour rendering) which is important since the prints should be able to endure a lot of in-hand manipulation. The specimens were printed using the manual screen printing technique on four different textile substrates. Apart from the substrate, the amount of added puff substance in ink and the screen printing mesh count varied. After testing the mechanical resistance to rubbing, colour differences were calculated. Based on the results obtained, resistance to mechanical effect was confirmed, and it was determined which prints have the best resistance and tactile features. Further investigations will be focused on investigating the same type of printing on different materials, and discovering how can prints with puff effect contribute to in-hand object manipulation.

A lot of research today implies that packaging attributes have an essential role in attracting consumer attention, creating expectations and influencing product choice. Many studies have documented that people match a variety of tastes, aromas, and flavours to other sensory features, such as shapes and colours. This study investigates the influence of the type of a beverage on its packaging shape. The study is designed to discover what packaging materials, the shape of packaging body and the type of packaging opening consumers prefer for each beverage: milk (chocolate milk, milkshake), soda, juice, yoghurt, fruit yoghurt, water and ice coffee. The investigation was conducted through a survey where participants were asked to choose a packaging shape from a variety of presented shapes. The stimuli that were used were grayscale photographs of packaging without any graphic design applied. These packaging differed not only in shape but also in materials from which they were made and the type of opening system. The result implies that participants that consumed a certain type of drink on regular basis were more open for new different atypical packaging shapes. On the other hand, for products that they consumed less, they preferred a packaging that was most commonly presented and placed on the market where they live. Also, these results support the view of many researchers that delicate and subtle flavours were best presented in packaging with rounded and curvy shapes, while sour and intense flavours are best presented with angular shapes. Characteristic that turned out to be very important was the shape of the packaging body but in terms of ergonomics and ease of use. It was found that there is a positive correlation between aesthetic features and ergonomic features of the packaging. These findings are relevant to those researchers interested in tastevision correspondences, it should contribute to product communication, and it can be used as a base for future research focused on packaging shape and ergonomics.