PSYCHOPHYSICAL METHODS AND PASSENGER PREFERENCES OF INTERIOR DESIGNS

A psychophysical experiment was conducted to evaluate the interior des ign alternatives of a highspeed train. Preference of each. design alte rnative was quantitatively measured by using the magnitude estimation technique. Subsequent analyses showed that (1) passenger seats should be able to be arranged in the moving direction of a train, (2) a varie ty of interior convenience facilities, especially, an audio facility, should be provided to enhance passenger comfort and (3) the design req uirements suggested by young passengers could improve the overall pref erence level. In addition, guidelines for collecting, standardizing, a nd analyzing the data are suggested when the magnitude estimation tech nique is used. The use of psychophysical data is expected to be very u seful when it is necessary to make engineering decisions based on quan titative preference data. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights re served.