친환경 기능성 베개의 생체역학적 평가

Biomechanical Evaluation of Eco-Friendly Functional Pillows

The purpose of this study was to evaluate of Eco-Friendly Pillows by measuring the cervical stability, head surface pressure, and the level of muscle activity. Eight subjects participated in the experiment where eco-friendly pillow and other pillows(ordinary pillow and memory foam pillow) were functionally compared alternately and repeatedly. Six channels of electromyography(EMG), ten channels of the pressure sensors were used. Surface electrodes were attached to the right/left semispinals capitis(RSC, LSC), the right/left sternocleidomastoid (RSM, LSM), the right/left lower trapezius(RLT, LLT). Electromyography(EMG) data were analyzed by using RMS(Root Mean Square) and MPF(Mean Power Frequency). In results, when subjects lied down to the side, the cervical stability of eco-friendly pillow's was shown to be significantly higher than other two pillows. Regarding the head surface pressure, the eco-friendly pillow which was made by Korean traditional material showed most uniformly distributed pressure. Furthermore, muscle activity indicated that more effective load sharing was found in the eco-friendly pillow than the others. In conclusion, the eco-friendly pillow is suitable to maintain the anatomically proper position of the neck and distribute the head surface pressure evenly. The characteristics of eco-friendly pillow can be applied to develop an Ergonomic pillow in order to minimize bad posture and muscle fatigue.