PC-PVT: A platform for psychomotor vigilance task testing, analysis, and prediction

Abstract

Using a personal computer (PC) for simple visual reaction time testing is advantageous because of the relatively low hardware cost, user familiarity, and the relative ease of software development for specific neurobehavioral testing protocols. However, general-purpose computers are not designed with the millisecond-level accuracy of operation required for such applications. Software that does not control for the various sources of delay may return reaction time values that are substantially different from the true reaction times. We have developed and characterized a freely available system for PC-based simple visual reaction time testing that is analogous to the widely used psychomotor vigilance task (PVT). In addition, we have integrated individualized prediction algorithms for near-real-time neurobehavioral performance prediction. We characterized the precision and accuracy with which the system as a whole measures reaction times on a wide range of computer hardware configurations, comparing its performance with that of the “gold standard” PVT-192 device. We showed that the system is capable of measuring reaction times with an average delay of less than 10 ms, a margin of error that is comparable to that of the gold standard. The most critical aspect of hardware selection is the type of mouse used for response detection, with gaming mice showing a significant advantage over standard ones. The software is free to download from http://bhsai.org/downloads/pc-pvt/.

The Impact of a Rigorous Multiple Work Shift Schedule and Day Versus Night Shift Work on Reaction Time and Balance Performance in Female Nurses

“…Conveniently, this test has been recently developed and validated using a freely downloadable personal computer-based (PC) software program. 24 The PVT was conducted similar to the procedures of Khitrov et al, 24 using the downloadable software, a PC laptop (Dell Precision M6500; Dell Inc., Round Rock, TX) and optical gaming mouse (Razer Abyssus; Razer, Carlsbad, CA). The PVT was 5 minutes in duration, and subjects were asked to turn off all personal electronic devices and were not allowed to have any other persons present in the room during the test administration.…”

“…The PVT was selected, as it is considered to be the ''gold standard'' 24 vigilance and visual RT test, and has been successfully used in nursing populations. Notably, Surani et al 16 have suggested that it may be relevant to nurses because ''professional vigilance, the art of 'watching out' is the essence of nursing'' (pg.…”

Validation of sleep-2-Peak: A smartphone application that can detect fatigue-related changes in reaction times during sleep deprivation

“…The Psychomotor Vigilance Test (PVT), developed in the 1980s by Dinges and Powell (1985), is a good example of such a tool. Indeed, the PVT is currently the most popular validated reaction time (RT) test for sleep research and has been the gold standard in the field for many years (Dinges & Powell, 1985;Khitrov et al, 2014). However, the PVT is available and validated on only a very limited number of devices, including the original PVT-192 and a few computer-based versions.…”

Evaluation of a Psychomotor Vigilance Task for Touch Screen Devices

“…Others have used different methodology to determine the device latency between a response box and RT documented on a computer-based test (Khitrov et al, 2014). Although we could have connected an RT box to the touch screen device to determine the latency arising from software processing, we chose to evaluate the latency using a high-speed camera in order to also capture differences between individuals relating to the administration of the PVT on a touch screen device.…”