Human-automation collaboration in manufacturing: identifying key implementation factors

Human-automation collaboration refers to the concept of human operators and intelligent automation working together interactively within the same workspace without conventional physical separation. This concept has commanded significant attention in manufacturing because of the potential applications, such as the installation of large sub-assemblies. However, the key human factors relevant to human-automation collaboration have not yet been fully investigated. To maximise effective implementation and reduce development costs for future projects these factors need to be examined. In this paper, a collection of human factors likely to influence human-automation collaboration are identified from current literature. To test the validity of these and explore further factors associated with implementation success, different types of production processes in terms of stage of maturity are being explored via industrial case studies from the project’s stakeholders. Data was collected through a series of semi-structured interviews with shop floor operators, engineers, system designers and management personnel

A Systematic Literature Review of User Experience Evaluation Scales for Human-Robot Collaboration

In the last decade, the field of Human-Robot Collaboration (HRC) has received much attention from both research institutions and industries. Robot technologies are in fact deployed in many different areas (e.g., industrial processes, people assistance) to support an effective collaboration between humans and robots. In this transdisciplinary context, User eXperience (UX) has inevitably to be considered to achieve an effective HRC, namely to allow the robots to better respond to the users’ needs and thus improve the interaction quality. The present paper reviews the evaluation scales used in HRC scenarios, focusing on the application context and evaluated aspects. In particular, a systematic review was conducted based on the following questions: (RQ1) which evaluation scales are adopted within the HRI scenario with collaborative tasks?, and (RQ2) how the UX and user satisfaction are assessed?. The records analysis highlighted that the UX aspects are not sufficiently examined in the current HRC design practice, particularly in the industrial field. This is most likely due to a lack of standardized scales. To respond to this recognized need, a set of dimensions to be considered in a new UX evaluation scale were proposed

Comparing quality profiles in Human-Robot Collaboration: empirical evidence in the automotive sector

Purpose: Human-Robot Collaboration (HRC) is a paradigm that is gradually consolidating in the industrial field. The goal of this paradigm is to combine human and robot skills to make production more flexible. An effective implementation of HRC requires a careful analysis of its different aspects, related to both robots and humans. For this reason, the development of a tool able to consider all HRC aspects to evaluate the collaboration quality is a real practical need. Design/methodology/approach: In a previous work, Gervasi et al. (2020) proposed a multidimensional framework to evaluate HRC quality. This framework has been tested on a real industrial HRC application in the automotive sector. Two different alternatives of the same assembly task were analyzed and compared on the quality reference framework. Findings: The comparison between the two alternatives of the same assembly task highlighted the framework's ability to detect the effects of different configurations on the various HRC dimensions. This ability can be useful in decision making processes and in improving the collaboration quality. Social implications: The framework considers the human aspects related to the interaction with robots, allowing to effectively monitor and improve the collaboration quality and operator satisfaction. Originality/value: This paper extends and shows the use of the HRC evaluation framework proposed by Gervasi et al. (2020) on real industrial applications. In addition, an HRC application implemented in an important automotive company is described and analyzed in detail

Development of a human factors roadmap for the successful implementation of industrial human-robot collaboration

The concept of industrial human-robot collaboration (HRC) is becoming increasingly integrated into manufacturing production lines as a means for enhancing productivity and product quality. However, developments have focused primarily on the technology and, until recently, little research has been geared to understand the key human factors (HF) that need to be considered to enable successful implementation of industrial HRC. Recent work by the authors has led to the identification of key organisational and individual level HF. The purpose of this paper is to draw together the evidence from their studies and propose a HF roadmap for the successful implementation of industrial HRC. The roadmap will have profound implications as it enables automation specialists and manufacturing system engineers to understand the key HF that need to be considered optimise the efficiency and productivity of the collaboration between humans and industrial robots

Evaluation of Human Robot Collaboration in Masonry Work Using Immersive Virtual Environments

With the advent of collaborative robots, there is a great potential to improve work performance by human-robot collaboration in engineering tasks. Construction is no exception. Many construction tasks are based on the movement of objects (e.g., material), which are viable candidates for human-robot collaboration. However, due to the physically imposing nature of robot operations and the unstructured environments typical in construction, it is crucial to provide a safe and reliable environment for human workers when performing collaborative work with robots. In this paper, we use Immersive Virtual Environments (IVEs) to evaluate a human response to robots (e.g. perceived safety, trust, and team identification) while performing collaborative construction tasks with robots. By adopting IVEs, various types of robots, interactions, and tasks can be easily tested and evaluated to determine the best HRC practice, without the need to build and evaluate a physical prototype. Several experimental scenarios simulating collaborative masonry tasks were implemented using the Unity3D Game Engine and an Oculus Rift 3D Head-Mounted Display (HMD). The results demonstrate that it is important to take into account work environment of human-robot collaboration in order to understand how humans perceive robots when working with them.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/116277/1/CONVR2015_Final.pd

Occupational health and safety issues in human-robot collaboration: State of the art and open challenges

Human-Robot Collaboration (HRC) refers to the interaction of workers and robots in a shared workspace. Owing to the integration of the industrial automation strengths with the inimitable cognitive capabilities of humans, HRC is paramount to move towards advanced and sustainable production systems. Although the overall safety of collaborative robotics has increased over time, further research efforts are needed to allow humans to operate alongside robots, with awareness and trust. Numerous safety concerns are open, and either new or enhanced technical, procedural and organizational measures have to be investigated to design and implement inherently safe and ergonomic automation solutions, aligning the systems performance and the human safety. Therefore, a bibliometric analysis and a literature review are carried out in the present paper to provide a comprehensive overview of Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) issues in HRC. As a result, the most researched topics and application areas, and the possible future lines of research are identified. Reviewed articles stress the central role played by humans during collaboration, underlining the need to integrate the human factor in the hazard analysis and risk assessment. Human-centered design and cognitive engineering principles also require further investigations to increase the worker acceptance and trust during collaboration. Deepened studies are compulsory in the healthcare sector, to investigate the social and ethical implications of HRC. Whatever the application context is, the implementation of more and more advanced technologies is fundamental to overcome the current HRC safety concerns, designing low-risk HRC systems while ensuring the system productivity