Human-Centered Design in Wearable Technology
A special issue of Applied Sciences (ISSN 2076-3417). This special issue belongs to the section "Applied Biosciences and Bioengineering".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 April 2026 | Viewed by 38
Special Issue Editors
Interests: wearable devices; human factors; biomechanics; occupational health
Interests: wearable devices; industrial design; intelligent design; human reliability
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Interests: wearable devices; human factors; human-computer interaction; spaceflight ergonomics
Interests: wearable devices; ergonomics; occupational health; work-related musculoskeletal disorders
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Wearable technology has emerged as a transformative force in both daily life and professional environments, offering unprecedented opportunities for health monitoring, augmented performance, and human–computer interaction. As these devices increasingly integrate artificial intelligence (AI) and advanced sensor systems, the importance of human-centered design becomes more critical to ensure safety, usability, comfort, and long-term adoption.
Human factors and ergonomics are essential for optimizing wearable technology across diverse applications, from personalized health tracking to occupational safety and productivity. Wearable systems can support early detection and intervention for work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs), facilitate intelligent monitoring of physiological and psychological health, and enhance decision-making in high-demand work contexts. At the same time, AI-assisted design methods offer novel opportunities to integrate user data, predict ergonomic risks, and tailor interface and feedback systems to individual needs.
This Special Issue aims to bring together cutting-edge research on design, evaluation, and application of wearable technologies that prioritize intelligent interaction, human–computer interaction, occupational health, human factors, and ergonomics. We invite contributions from multiple disciplines, including engineering, human–computer interaction, occupational health sciences, biomedical sciences, and industrial design.
Recommended topics include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Human factors and ergonomics in wearable systems;
- AI-assisted design for wearable devices;
- Wearable technology for occupational health and safety;
- Monitoring and prevention of work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs);
- Human–computer interaction (HCI) for wearable technologies;
- Hardware system design for ergonomics and reliability;
- User interface and display design for wearables;
- Wearable health monitoring and intervention strategies;
- Intelligent sensing and multimodal interaction in wearable systems;
- Field applications in workplace and healthcare contexts.
Dr. Hao Fan
Prof. Dr. Dengkai Chen
Dr. Ao Jiang
Dr. Mengcheng Wang
Dr. Jinlei Shi
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Applied Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- wearable design
- human–computer interaction
- health monitoring
- human-centered design
- human factors and ergonomics
- AI-assisted design
- occupational health
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