Human-robot collaborative assembly and welding: A review and analysis of the state of the art

This paper reviews and analyzes the recent progress in human-robot collaborative (HRC) technologies that enhance assembly and welding processes. It focuses on how the HRC approach helps improve assembly and welding productivity and quality, while enabling complex process operations that cannot be accomplished by humans or robots/machines alone. It also discusses the basic elements in HRC approaches, including (1) human sensors, (2) signal processing for extraction of human intent from sensors, (3) presentation of information to the human for their reaction, obtained from environmental sensors that monitor the environment, machines, and processes, and (4) interface control, which manages how information is presented to the human, what reactions are expected from the human, and what needs to be presented next. Finally, it summarizes the state-of-the-art in the major elements and application accomplishments, identifies challenges for greater benefits, and proposes directions to address these challenges.