Human Factors and Ergonomics in Manufacturing & Service Industries最新文献

Industrial collaborative robots have become increasingly important in recent years due to their ability to work safely and efficiently alongside humans. As a result, there is a growing need for evaluation standards to ensure the quality of collaborative robots. However, existing studies only consider system-centered and technical aspects of collaborative robots, and there is a lack of research on user-centered quality evaluation. In this study, we identified 21 user requirements based on a user-centered design framework and confirmed the limitations of existing quality standards by reviewing the standard clauses for collaborative robots. It was found that user needs to be related to performance, safety, and even usability and enjoyment are already being expressed according to the user-centered design framework, but the quality standards for these needs only present design principles or do not consider them at all. This study provides information on the quality attributes that need to be fulfilled to satisfy user requirements and suggests the need and direction for further research on the user-centered evaluation of collaborative robots. Accordingly, the user's perception and experience of collaborative robots are expected to improve.

A number of studies analyze the link between the presence of psychosocial risk factors and work-related musculoskeletal disorders. The increase in job insecurity (JI) has resulted in a growing focus on its likely role as a risk factor within occupational health. Accordingly, the aim of this research was to carry out a systematic review of studies that include JI among the relevant risk factors, specifically drawing data from this variable to observe the significance of its association with musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs). For this purpose, a literature search was carried out: from a sample of 859 studies found and 23 were selected after applying the eligibility criteria. Fifteen studies (65.2% of the selection) presented statistically significant results regarding the link between JI and MSDs: the upper limbs and back were the body areas most affected by this association. In sum, JI should be considered a potential precursor of MSDs. Therefore, further study on this psychosocial risk and its association with these types of pathologies is necessary.

This commentary paper will describe how the discipline of human factors and ergonomics (HFE) can help to close the gender data gap, which is prevalent across many domains and arises due to a lack of data capturing female metrics and viewpoints. HFE is a domain-independent discipline that seeks to understand human performance and well-being with respect to the interactions that humans engage in and the environments that they inhabit. HFE therefore presents an opportunity to understand how gender influences human performance, effective design, social interactions, and environmental factors. This paper argues that a sociotechnical systems approach is essential when reviewing equality, diversity, and inclusivity issues, without which attempts to close the gender data gap will not go far enough. Following the sociotechnical systems approach in HFE, the micro-, meso-, and macro-levels of system design with respect to closing the gender data gap are reviewed. We discuss these issues in relation to a case study example of a crash test dummy. A checklist approach for researchers is presented, which identifies key questions that prompt where gender should be considered in the research process across these levels of sociotechnical systems.

Growing interest in “connected services” is set to revolutionize the design of future transport systems. In aviation, connected portable Electronic Flight Bags (EFBs) would enable some of the traditional and more arduous preflight activities (e.g., route planning) to be conducted away from the flight deck. While this offers the opportunity to improve efficiency, any potential changes to the performance of the system need to be considered alongside the possible negative outcomes. The impact of EFBs on flight operations is assessed using Operator Event Sequence Diagrams (OESDs), which allow the operator interactions with technological systems to be mapped across different scenarios. This paper presents two OESDs: one focusing on current practise and one representing a “future” scenario whereby connected EFBs are commonplace. Our analysis predicts a 44% reduction in flight-crew operational loading due to increased connectivity in the flight deck. Not only does the analysis highlight the reduction in operations but it also presents the utility of OESDs in the development of the connected EFBs of the future as well as their broader use in understanding the impact of new technologies on performance.

Handicraft is the backbone of rural economy of countries of South Asia and Southeast Asia. Bell metal handicraft known as “Dhokra craft,” is an important metal handicraft practiced in India. Commercialization of this craft industry has increased working hours but the business model is still cottage-based. Manual manufacturing for commercial needs has increased incidence of hand injuries among the artisans affecting sustainable growth. The objective of this research is to find the cause of work-related hand injuries of the artisans of bell metal handicraft industry to provide direction for future research. Occupational risk on hands were identified using Modified Dutch Musculoskeletal Questionnaire. Severity of hand symptoms were assessed by Modified Boston Hand Evaluation Questionnaire. Direct observation and task analysis was further used to understand the risk involved in the job. Use of hand tools and power tools play significant role in the development of hand injuries among the artisans. Hand problems such as amputation, burning marks, loss of sensitivity, and tingling sensation were highly observed among artisans, those with experience >31 years. Experienced artisans undergo more occupational hand injuries, causing absenteeism, job turnover, and job loss. This ultimately affects the sustainable growth of the Dhokra trade community.

In 2017, load limit values for manual material handling (MMH) tasks were confirmed to protect workers from low back disorders without prior validity investigation for Iranian workers. The present study investigated the applicability and feasibility of the Washington State Department of Labor and Industries (WISHA) lifting method as an occupational exposure limit (OEL) for the MMH tasks in a sample of young Iranian female workers using biomechanical and physiological criteria. A laboratory study was conducted with 10 female participants performing lifting tasks as described in the Iranian OEL for the MMH tasks based on the WISHA checklist. Each participant completed 21 lifting task combinations that varied in height and reach with the maximal allowable load. To test the applicability of the WISHA method, the maximum aerobic capacity and the equivalent heart rate (EHR) were estimated for 10 young Iranian female workers using an ergometer and Astrand protocol. Moreover, spinal loads for each lifting task were calculated using a static biomechanical model. From a physiological point of view, approximately 38% of the lifting tasks resulted in an increase in the physical workload. For 33% of the lifting trials, the estimated compression loads exceeded 3400 N. The findings revealed that the weight and lift height of the loads affected the lifting capacity of the participants. It seems that the allowable weight limits for manual lifting are not matched to the biomechanical and physiological capacities of the Iranian women. Therefore, the Iranian guideline for manual lifting is recommended to be revised based on the physiological and biomechanical capacities of the Iranian women.

In 2009, Colgan Air Flight 3407 had a fatal crash in New York due to an aircraft aerodynamic stall. Previous reports had placed the actions of the crew as the cause of the incident; however, this work provides a sociotechnical systems analysis of the events that led up to the fatal accident. An Accimap analysis provides a top-down systemic analysis of Flight 3407, considering the high-level governmental and regulatory agencies involvement. An online survey with 47 airline pilots provides a bottom-up review of pilots’ perceptions and decision-making in response to aerodynamic stall events. Combining the two approaches generates a holistic approach to managing aerodynamic stall events. Analysis of Flight 3407 identified contributory factors within the higher regulatory and company levels. Furthermore, questions of appropriate training were raised by the pilots within the survey results regarding the immediate response to a stall event which commonly affords a startle and/or surprise response. The impact of “startle and surprise” on the pilots’ response to this situation was identified as a key area to focus on, with design and training recommendations provided. We consider these within the context of recent training recommendations in the industry.

A critical but often overlooked road safety concern is gender differences in road safety issues. The limited investigations have reported gender differences in road safety issues such as traffic accident rates and crash injuries. An emerging road safety issue is the safety of gig workers. Despite the exponential growth of the gig economy, little is known about road safety issues faced by gig workers, including gender-specific road safety issues. The present study aimed to investigate whether there are gender differences in gig workers' involvement in road safety incidents and the likelihood of reporting incidents when gig working. Gig workers who provide, or have provided, ride-hailing, courier, and food delivery services via digital platforms in Australia were invited to participate in an online survey on their involvement in road safety incidents and the likelihood that they would report road and personal safety incidents when gig working. Data from 71 gig workers (35 female gig workers; 36 male gig workers) were reported in the study. No gender differences were found in their involvement in road safety incidents and the likelihood of reporting road and personal safety incidents when gig working. Despite the lack of gender differences observed, findings from the study contributed to the research field and to closing the gender data gap. A research agenda is proposed for further data collection in gig work using a systems thinking approach to better our understanding of factors influencing the gendered participation in the gig workforce, and the health, safety, and wellbeing of gig workers.

This field study examined the automatic speech recognition (ASR) of voice-directed computerized systems for order selectors employed in large industrial settings (e.g., fulfillment centers, distribution centers, warehouses, and manufacturing plants). Voice-directed systems for order selection require selectors to listen to instructions via a headset and speak into a microphone, directing each worker to select products for store orders throughout the facility. Originally, ASR used voice recognition that required “voice enrollment” (voice setup) for each worker plus a trainer's time required as part of the setup. Voice setup generally averaged about 60 min for both the worker and the trainer. Lately, a newer technology now utilizes “speech recognition,” which eliminates voice enrollment altogether. This study measured order selector voice setup times between voice recognition and speech recognition in five facilities. In two distribution centers where speech recognition was implemented, all voice setup hours for all order selectors (n = 55) plus the trainer's time were eliminated. This amounted to a total savings of 110 h. Moreover, using speech recognition becomes a recurring saving for each new employee entering the organization. Now the focus of training is shifted from voice setup to immediately training workers to select orders via voice, an ergonomic improvement.

Interdisciplinary collaboration frequently comes into play when existing problems cannot be solved by one discipline alone. However, the interlocking of contributions from different disciplines is by no means trivial. This exploratory study examines one foundation of successful teamwork, namely shared mental models. To this end, we compared the contents of mental models between members of different but interdependent disciplines who collaboratively solve knowledge-intensive, creative tasks. Five automation and five mechanical engineers were recruited from a company that produces packaging machines. In semi-structured interviews, participants reported their approach to evaluating the process behavior of a packaging machine, and their mental models were represented in concept maps. Quantitative analyses revealed that the maps of automation engineers were smaller than those of mechanical engineers. In qualitative analyses, the focus on different levels of abstraction and on contents from the two disciplines was examined. Automation engineers represented a large proportion of rather abstract machine functions, whereas mechanical engineers additionally represented the physical implementation of these functions. The disciplinary focus also differed in the sense that automation engineers mainly attended to automated machine processes, while mechanical engineers attended to both mechanical and automated processes. Overall, automation engineers' focus was narrower than that of mechanical engineers. We explain these results by considering typical tasks and reasoning processes in both disciplines, and discuss how shared mental models can aid the integration of different disciplinary perspectives, for instance, during Systems Engineering.