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Author
Collins, B. L. | Pierman, B. C.
Title
Evaluation of Safety Symbols.
Coporate
National Bureau of Standards, Gaithersburg, MD
Report
NBSIR 79-1760, June 1979, 37 p.
Distribution
Available from National Technical Information Service
Keywords
communication | evaluation methods | fire safety | hazard warnings | pictograms | safety information | standardization | symbols
Abstract
The increasing use of symbols to convey fire safety information nonverbally is described. In addition, the trend toward international standardization of symbols is discussed for transportation and other systems. The need for further research on symbols is discussed in terms of the advantages and disadvantges of symbol use. Advantages include rapid and accurate communication without the barriers of verbal language. Disadvantages include the too rapid proliferation of different symbols and inappropriate or misleading application. Furthermore, the failure to evaluate the understandability of each symbol is cited as a major problem. A case study which documents some of the advantages and disadvantages of a set of proposed fire-safety symbols is presented. Finally, areas for further research on symbol evaluation are discussed.