Common Metrics for Human-Robot Interaction

This paper describes an effort to identify common metrics for task-oriented human-robot interaction (HRI). We begin by discussing the need for a toolkit of HRI metrics. We then describe the framework of our work and identify important biasing factors that must be taken into consideration. Finally, we present suggested common metrics for standardization and a case study. Preparation of a larger, more detailed toolkit is in progress

Smart operators: How Industry 4.0 is affecting the worker's performance in manufacturing contexts

Abstract The fourth industrial revolution is affecting the workforce at strategical, tactical, and operational levels and it is leading to the development of new careers with precise and specific skills and competence. The implementation of enabling technologies in the industrial context involves new types of interactions between operators and machines, interactions that transform the industrial workforce and have significant implications for the nature of the work. The incoming generation of Smart Operators 4.0 is characterised by intelligent and qualified operators who perform the work with the support of machines, interact with collaborative robots and advanced systems, use technologies such as wearable devices and augmented and virtual reality. The correct interaction between the workforce and the various enabling technologies of the 4.0 paradigm represents a crucial aspect of the success of the smart factory. However, this interaction is affected by the variability of human behaviour and its reliability, which can strongly influence the quality, safety, and productivity standards. For this reason, this paper aims to provide a clear and complete analysis of the different types of smart operators and the impact of 4.0 enabling technologies on the performance of operators, evaluating the stakeholders involved, the type of interaction, the changes required for operators in terms of added and removed work, and the new performance achieved by workers

Machine Learning for Semi-Automated Scoping Reviews

Scoping reviews are a type of research synthesis that aims to map the literature on a particular topic or research area. Though originally intended to provide a quick overview of a field of research, scoping review teams have been overwhelmed in recent years by a deluge of available research literature. This work presents the interdisciplinary development of a semi-automated scoping review methodology aimed at increasing the objectivity and speed of discovery in scoping reviews as well as the scalability of the scoping review process to datasets with tens of thousands of publications. To this end we leverage modern representation learning algorithms based on transformer models and established clustering methods to discover evidence maps, key themes within the data, knowledge gaps within the literature, and assess the feasibility of follow-on systematic reviews within a certain topic. To demonstrate the wide applicability of this methodology, we apply the here proposed semi-automated method to two separate datasets, a Virtual Human dataset with more than 30,000 peer-reviewed academic articles and a smaller Self-Avatar dataset with less than 500 peer-reviewed articles. To enable collaboration, we provide full access to analyzed datasets, keyword and author word clouds, as well as interactive evidence maps

Applying Control Abstraction to the Design of Human–Agent Teams

Levels of Automation (LOA) provide a method for describing authority granted to automated system elements to make individual decisions. However, these levels are technology-centric and provide little insight into overall system operation. The current research discusses an alternate classification scheme, referred to as the Level of Human Control Abstraction (LHCA). LHCA is an operator-centric framework that classifies a system’s state based on the required operator inputs. The framework consists of five levels, each requiring less granularity of human control: Direct, Augmented, Parametric, Goal-Oriented, and Mission-Capable. An analysis was conducted of several existing systems. This analysis illustrates the presence of each of these levels of control, and many existing systems support system states which facilitate multiple LHCAs. It is suggested that as the granularity of human control is reduced, the level of required human attention and required cognitive resources decreases. Thus, it is suggested that designing systems that permit the user to select among LHCAs during system control may facilitate human-machine teaming and improve the flexibility of the system

Machine learning for semi-automated scoping reviews

Scoping reviews are a type of research synthesis that aim to map the literature on a particular topic or research area. Though originally intended to provide a quick overview of a field of research, scoping review teams have been overwhelmed in recent years by a deluge of available research literature. This work presents the interdisciplinary development of a semi-automated scoping review methodology aimed at increasing the objectivity and speed of discovery in scoping reviews as well as the scalability of the scoping review process to datasets with tens of thousands of publications. To this end we leverage modern representation learning algorithms based on transformer models and established clustering methods to discover evidence maps, key themes within the data, knowledge gaps within the literature, and assess the feasibility of follow-on systematic reviews within a certain topic. To demonstrate the wide applicability of this methodology, we apply the here proposed semi-automated method to two separate datasets, a Virtual Human dataset with more than 30,000 peer-reviewed academic articles and a smaller Self-Avatar dataset with less than 500 peer-reviewed articles. To enable collaboration, we provide full access to analyzed datasets, keyword and author word clouds, as well as interactive evidence maps.</p

A Strategic Roadmap for the Manufacturing Industry to Implement Industry 4.0

Industry 4.0 (also referred to as digitization of manufacturing) is characterized by cyber physical systems, automation, and data exchange. It is no longer a future trend and is being employed worldwide by manufacturing organizations, to gain benefits of improved performance, reduced inefficiencies, and lower costs, while improving flexibility. However, the implementation of Industry 4.0 enabling technologies is a difficult task and becomes even more challenging without any standardized approach. The barriers include, but are not limited to, lack of knowledge, inability to realistically quantify the return on investment, and lack of a skilled workforce. This study presents a systematic and content-centric literature review of Industry 4.0 enabling technologies, to highlight their impact on the manufacturing industry. It also provides a strategic roadmap for the implementation of Industry 4.0, based on lean six sigma approaches. The basis of the roadmap is the design for six sigma approach for the development of a new process chain, followed by a continuous improvement plan. The reason for choosing lean six sigma is to provide manufacturers with a sense of familiarity, as they have been employing these principles for removing waste and reducing variability. Major reasons for the rejection of Industry 4.0 implementation methodologies by manufactures are fear of the unknown and resistance to change, whereas the use of lean six sigma can mitigate them. The strategic roadmap presented in this paper can offer a holistic view of phases that manufacturers should undertake and the challenges they might face in their journey toward Industry 4.0 transition

Large-Scale Distributed Coalition Formation

The CyberCraft project is an effort to construct a large scale Distributed Multi-Agent System (DMAS) to provide autonomous Cyberspace defense and mission assurance for the DoD. It employs a small but flexible agent structure that is dynamically reconfigurable to accommodate new tasks and policies. This document describes research into developing protocols and algorithms to ensure continued mission execution in a system of one million or more agents, focusing on protocols for coalition formation and Command and Control. It begins by building large-scale routing algorithms for a Hierarchical Peer to Peer structured overlay network, called Resource-Clustered Chord (RC-Chord). RC-Chord introduces the ability to efficiently locate agents by resources that agents possess. Combined with a task model defined for CyberCraft, this technology feeds into an algorithm that constructs task coalitions in a large-scale DMAS. Experiments reveal the flexibility and effectiveness of these concepts for achieving maximum work throughput in a simulated CyberCraft environment

Artificial Intelligence in the Construction Industry: A Systematic Review of the Entire Construction Value Chain Lifecycle

© 2023 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY), https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/In recent years, there has been a surge in the global digitization of corporate processes and concepts such as digital technology development which is growing at such a quick pace that the construction industry is struggling to catch up with latest developments. A formidable digital technology, artificial intelligence (AI), is recognized as an essential element within the paradigm of digital transformation, having been widely adopted across different industries. Also, AI is anticipated to open a slew of new possibilities for how construction projects are designed and built. To obtain a better knowledge of the trend and trajectory of research concerning AI technology application in the construction industry, this research presents an exhaustive systematic review of seventy articles toward AI applicability to the entire lifecycle of the construction value chain identified via the guidelines outlined by the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA). The review’s findings show foremostly that AI technologies are mostly used in facility management, creating a huge opportunity for the industry to profit by allowing facility managers to take proactive action. Secondly, it shows the potential for design expansion as a key benefit according to most of the selected literature. Finally, it found data augmentation as one of the quickest prospects for technical improvement. This knowledge will assist construction companies across the world in recognizing the efficiency and productivity advantages that AI technologies can provide while helping them make smarter technology investment decisions.Peer reviewe

Probabilistic Human-Robot Information Fusion

This thesis is concerned with combining the perceptual abilities of mobile robots and human operators to execute tasks cooperatively. It is generally agreed that a synergy of human and robotic skills offers an opportunity to enhance the capabilities of today’s robotic systems, while also increasing their robustness and reliability. Systems which incorporate both human and robotic information sources have the potential to build complex world models, essential for both automated and human decision making. In this work, humans and robots are regarded as equal team members who interact and communicate on a peer-to-peer basis. Human-robot communication is addressed using probabilistic representations common in robotics. While communication can in general be bidirectional, this work focuses primarily on human-to-robot information flow. More specifically, the approach advocated in this thesis is to let robots fuse their sensor observations with observations obtained from human operators. While robotic perception is well-suited for lower level world descriptions such as geometric properties, humans are able to contribute perceptual information on higher abstraction levels. Human input is translated into the machine representation via Human Sensor Models. A common mathematical framework for humans and robots reinforces the notion of true peer-to-peer interaction. Human-robot information fusion is demonstrated in two application domains: (1) scalable information gathering, and (2) cooperative decision making. Scalable information gathering is experimentally demonstrated on a system comprised of a ground vehicle, an unmanned air vehicle, and two human operators in a natural environment. Information from humans and robots was fused in a fully decentralised manner to build a shared environment representation on multiple abstraction levels. Results are presented in the form of information exchange patterns, qualitatively demonstrating the benefits of human-robot information fusion. The second application domain adds decision making to the human-robot task. Rational decisions are made based on the robots’ current beliefs which are generated by fusing human and robotic observations. Since humans are considered a valuable resource in this context, operators are only queried for input when the expected benefit of an observation exceeds the cost of obtaining it. The system can be seen as adjusting its autonomy at run-time based on the uncertainty in the robots’ beliefs. A navigation task is used to demonstrate the adjustable autonomy system experimentally. Results from two experiments are reported: a quantitative evaluation of human-robot team effectiveness, and a user study to compare the system to classical teleoperation. Results show the superiority of the system with respect to performance, operator workload, and usability