EEG microstate changes according to mental fatigue induced by aircraft piloting simulation: An exploratory study

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Cognitive Psychology
• Human Factors Engineering

Background:

• Continuous flight tasks can induce significant mental fatigue.
• Electroencephalography (EEG) microstates offer insights into neural network activity during fatigue.
• Understanding fatigue's impact on EEG microstates is crucial for aviation safety.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore the effects of mental fatigue from continuous simulated flight multitasking on EEG microstate indices.
• To investigate how EEG microstate parameters change with induced mental fatigue.
• To assess the potential of EEG microstates in evaluating flight fatigue.

Main Methods:

• Twenty-four participants underwent a 2-hour simulated aircraft piloting task with continuous EEG recording.
• Subjective sleepiness (SSS) and cognitive performance (CFF) were measured pre- and post-task.
• EEG data were analyzed using microstate analysis, focusing on four identified classes (A-D) across different task phases.

Main Results:

• Mental fatigue increased global explained variance (GEV) and class C time parameters, while decreasing class D occurrence and coverage.
• Transition probabilities between microstate classes shifted, with decreased A-D and B-D transitions and increased A-C transitions.
• Subjective fatigue correlated negatively with class D, and task performance correlated with class B and C parameters.

Conclusions:

• EEG microstate time parameters and transition probabilities effectively detect mental fatigue induced by simulated flight.
• EEG microstates can monitor global brain network activation related to mental fatigue.
• This approach shows promise for evaluating flight fatigue and ensuring pilot safety.