Complexity in safety-critical systems

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Presentación. Atendiendo la diversificación de los sistemas interactivos

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Análisis de la evolución del Itinerario de Diseño Centrado en el Usuario y Diseño Inclusivo de la EPSEVG de la UPC

Podeu consultar el llibre complet a: http://hdl.handle.net/10459.1/64797En el año 2009 se iniciaron los estudios de grado de “Diseño Industrial y Desarrollo del Producto” en la “Escola Politècnica Superior d’Enginyeria de Vilanova i la Geltrú” de la Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya. Una de las especificidades de este grado fue la incorporación de un itinerario de Diseño Centrado en el Usuario y Diseño Inclusivo, focalizado en el área de conocimiento de la interacción persona-computador. Nueve años después, se presenta un análisis de la evolución de este itinerario basado en datos estadísticos agregados reales. Se han analizado datos de procedencia y nota de acceso de los estudiantes, número de matriculados y titulados, resultados de evaluación los estudiantes del itinerario, así como los resultados de las encuestas oficiales de la UPC realizadas por los estudiantes. El resultado principal de este estudio pone de manifiesto que se trata de una buena experiencia docente en HCI

Exploring the practical use of a collaborative robot for academic purposes

This article presents a set of experiences related to the setup and exploration of potential educational uses of a collaborative robot (cobot). The basic principles that have guided the work carried out have been three. First and foremost, study of all the functionalities offered by the robot and exploration of its potential academic uses both in subjects focused on industrial robotics and in subjects of related disciplines (automation, communications, computer vision). Second, achieve the total integration of the cobot at the laboratory, seeking not only independent uses of it but also seeking for applications (laboratory practices) in which the cobot interacts with some of the other devices already existing at the laboratory (other industrial robots and a flexible manufacturing system). Third, reuse of some available components and minimization of the number and associated cost of required new components. The experiences, carried out following a project-based learning methodology under the framework of bachelor and master subjects and thesis, have focused on the integration of mechanical, electronic and programming aspects in new design solutions (end effector, cooperative workspace, artificial vision system integration) and case studies (advanced task programming, cybersecure communication, remote access). These experiences have consolidated the students' acquisition of skills in the transition to professional life by having the close collaboration of the university faculty with the experts of the robotics company.Postprint (published version

Usability of vision-based interfaces

Vision-based interfaces can employ gestures to interact with an interactive system without touching it. Gestures are frequently modelled in laboratories, and usability testing should be carried out. However, often these interfaces present usability issues, and the great diversity of uses of these interfaces and the applications where they are used, makes it difficult to decide which factors to take into account in a usability test. In this paper, we review the literature to compile and analyze the usability factors and metrics used for vision-based interfaces.Postprint (published version

Instructional feedback based continuous evaluation: an analysis from the control theory point of view

The instructional feedback model establishes a parallelism among a feedback control automated system and the relationships between the teacher/instructor and the student/learner. In such a model the teacher/instructor is assumed to be the controller or provider of energy to the system to be controlled (the student’s/learner skills and competences on a specific subject). The instructional feedback is a closed loop model that relies on receiving feedback from the students/learners and to generate different actions to modify its learning performance. In this communication the idea of instructional feedback is reviewed and slightly reformulated highlighting the necessity and importance of another feedback loop that has to be closed on the student/learner side as well as providing the means for this. On the conventional instructional feedback model the feedback is received at the teacher/instructor side, whereas it is, on the author’s opinion, at the student side that has to be closed in order to be effective.Postprint (published version

Human intervention and interface design in automation systems

Human-Machine-Interfaces are with no doubt one of the constitutive parts of an automation system. However, it is not till recently that they have received appropriate attention. It is because of a major concern about aspects related to maintenance, safety, achieve operator awareness, etc has been gained. Even there are in the market software solutions that allow for the design of efficient and complex interaction systems, it is not widespread the use of a rational design of the overall interface system, especially for large scale systems where the monitoring and supervision systems may include hundreds of interfacing screens. It is on this respect hat this communication provides an example of such development also by showing how to include the automation level operational modes into the interfacing system. Another important aspect is how the human operator can enter the control loop in different ways, and such interaction needs to be considered as an integral part of the automation procedure as well as the communication of the automation device.In this paper the application of design and operational modes guidelines in automation are presented inside an educational flexible manufacturing system case study.Postprint (published version

On cognitive assistant robots for reducing variability in industrial human-robot activities

In the industrial domain, one important research activity for cognitive robotics is the development of assistant robots. In this work, we show how the use of a cognitive assistant robot can contribute to (i) improving task effectiveness and productivity, (ii) providing autonomy for the human supervisor to make decisions, providing or improving human operators’ skills, and (iii) giving feedback to the human operator in the loop. Our approach is evaluated on variability reduction in a manual assembly system. The overall study and analysis are performed on a model of the assembly system obtained using the Functional Resonance Analysis Method (FRAM) and tested in a robotic simulated scenario. Results show that a cognitive assistant robot is a useful partner in the role of improving the task effectiveness of human operators and supervisors.This work has been co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund of the European Union in the framework of the ERDF Operational Program of Catalonia 2014-2020, grant number 001-P-001643. Cecilio Angulo has been partly supported by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No. 825619 (AI4EU).Peer ReviewedPostprint (published version

Ergonomic design applied in a sugar mill interface

In tasks requiring human supervision in an industrial control room there are applied generic disciplines like automatic control and engineering systems. From the point of view of the human computer interaction applied to these disciplines it is necessary to add usability engineering and cognitive ergonomics. This integrated framework is an example of human-centred design on automation systems. The main goal of this work is the application of a cognitive ergonomic guideline for supervisory control in order to improve the efficiency of a sugar mill interface design.Peer ReviewedPostprint (published version

The use of role playing in human automation systems

This communication presents a collaborative experience between four Spanish centers: the School of Engineering (ETSE) and the Sports Services Area (SAF) both from the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB) jointly with two centers of the Technical University of Catalonia, the higher school from Vilanova i la Geltru (EPSEVG) and the higher school in Terrassa (ETSEIAT). The idea behind this collaboration is to explore the possibility of role engineering education and project development for engineering students. The basic principle of such projects is the identification of the corresponding roles associated with the different parts that can be found on current social/industrial activity.Postprint (published version