Advanced workstations and collaborative robots: exploiting eye-tracking and cardiac activity indices to unveil senior workers’ mental workload in assembly tasks
Introduction: As a result of Industry 5.0’s technological advancements, collaborative robots (cobots) have emerged as pivotal enablers for refining manufacturing processes while re-focusing on humans. However, the successful integration of these cutting-edge tools hinges on a better understanding of...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2023-12-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Robotics and AI |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/frobt.2023.1275572/full |
| _version_ | 1797393433000673280 |
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| author | Patrik Pluchino Patrik Pluchino Gabriella F. A. Pernice Federica Nenna Michele Mingardi Alice Bettelli Davide Bacchin Anna Spagnolli Anna Spagnolli Giulio Jacucci Andrea Ragazzon Leonardo Miglioranzi Carlo Pettenon Luciano Gamberini Luciano Gamberini |
| author_facet | Patrik Pluchino Patrik Pluchino Gabriella F. A. Pernice Federica Nenna Michele Mingardi Alice Bettelli Davide Bacchin Anna Spagnolli Anna Spagnolli Giulio Jacucci Andrea Ragazzon Leonardo Miglioranzi Carlo Pettenon Luciano Gamberini Luciano Gamberini |
| author_sort | Patrik Pluchino |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Introduction: As a result of Industry 5.0’s technological advancements, collaborative robots (cobots) have emerged as pivotal enablers for refining manufacturing processes while re-focusing on humans. However, the successful integration of these cutting-edge tools hinges on a better understanding of human factors when interacting with such new technologies, eventually fostering workers’ trust and acceptance and promoting low-fatigue work. This study thus delves into the intricate dynamics of human-cobot interactions by adopting a human-centric view.Methods: With this intent, we targeted senior workers, who often contend with diminishing work capabilities, and we explored the nexus between various human factors and task outcomes during a joint assembly operation with a cobot on an ergonomic workstation. Exploiting a dual-task manipulation to increase the task demand, we measured performance, subjective perceptions, eye-tracking indices and cardiac activity during the task. Firstly, we provided an overview of the senior workers’ perceptions regarding their shared work with the cobot, by measuring technology acceptance, perceived wellbeing, work experience, and the estimated social impact of this technology in the industrial sector. Secondly, we asked whether the considered human factors varied significantly under dual-tasking, thus responding to a higher mental load while working alongside the cobot. Finally, we explored the predictive power of the collected measurements over the number of errors committed at the work task and the participants’ perceived workload.Results: The present findings demonstrated how senior workers exhibited strong acceptance and positive experiences with our advanced workstation and the cobot, even under higher mental strain. Besides, their task performance suffered increased errors and duration during dual-tasking, while the eye behavior partially reflected the increased mental demand. Some interesting outcomes were also gained about the predictive power of some of the collected indices over the number of errors committed at the assembly task, even though the same did not apply to predicting perceived workload levels.Discussion: Overall, the paper discusses possible applications of these results in the 5.0 manufacturing sector, emphasizing the importance of adopting a holistic human-centered approach to understand the human-cobot complex better. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T00:03:28Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-e66880b014e5476b8ecb68b5995a160e |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2296-9144 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T00:03:28Z |
| publishDate | 2023-12-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Robotics and AI |
| spelling | doaj.art-e66880b014e5476b8ecb68b5995a160e2023-12-12T15:48:58ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Robotics and AI2296-91442023-12-011010.3389/frobt.2023.12755721275572Advanced workstations and collaborative robots: exploiting eye-tracking and cardiac activity indices to unveil senior workers’ mental workload in assembly tasksPatrik Pluchino0Patrik Pluchino1Gabriella F. A. Pernice2Federica Nenna3Michele Mingardi4Alice Bettelli5Davide Bacchin6Anna Spagnolli7Anna Spagnolli8Giulio Jacucci9Andrea Ragazzon10Leonardo Miglioranzi11Carlo Pettenon12Luciano Gamberini13Luciano Gamberini14Department of General Psychology, University of Padova, Padova, ItalyHuman Inspired Technology (HIT) Research Centre, University of Padova, Padova, ItalyDepartment of General Psychology, University of Padova, Padova, ItalyDepartment of General Psychology, University of Padova, Padova, ItalyDepartment of General Psychology, University of Padova, Padova, ItalyDepartment of General Psychology, University of Padova, Padova, ItalyDepartment of General Psychology, University of Padova, Padova, ItalyDepartment of General Psychology, University of Padova, Padova, ItalyHuman Inspired Technology (HIT) Research Centre, University of Padova, Padova, ItalyDepartment of Computer Science, Helsinki Institute for Information Technology, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, FinlandBNP Srl, Cittadella, Padova, ItalyBNP Srl, Cittadella, Padova, ItalyBNP Srl, Cittadella, Padova, ItalyDepartment of General Psychology, University of Padova, Padova, ItalyHuman Inspired Technology (HIT) Research Centre, University of Padova, Padova, ItalyIntroduction: As a result of Industry 5.0’s technological advancements, collaborative robots (cobots) have emerged as pivotal enablers for refining manufacturing processes while re-focusing on humans. However, the successful integration of these cutting-edge tools hinges on a better understanding of human factors when interacting with such new technologies, eventually fostering workers’ trust and acceptance and promoting low-fatigue work. This study thus delves into the intricate dynamics of human-cobot interactions by adopting a human-centric view.Methods: With this intent, we targeted senior workers, who often contend with diminishing work capabilities, and we explored the nexus between various human factors and task outcomes during a joint assembly operation with a cobot on an ergonomic workstation. Exploiting a dual-task manipulation to increase the task demand, we measured performance, subjective perceptions, eye-tracking indices and cardiac activity during the task. Firstly, we provided an overview of the senior workers’ perceptions regarding their shared work with the cobot, by measuring technology acceptance, perceived wellbeing, work experience, and the estimated social impact of this technology in the industrial sector. Secondly, we asked whether the considered human factors varied significantly under dual-tasking, thus responding to a higher mental load while working alongside the cobot. Finally, we explored the predictive power of the collected measurements over the number of errors committed at the work task and the participants’ perceived workload.Results: The present findings demonstrated how senior workers exhibited strong acceptance and positive experiences with our advanced workstation and the cobot, even under higher mental strain. Besides, their task performance suffered increased errors and duration during dual-tasking, while the eye behavior partially reflected the increased mental demand. Some interesting outcomes were also gained about the predictive power of some of the collected indices over the number of errors committed at the assembly task, even though the same did not apply to predicting perceived workload levels.Discussion: Overall, the paper discusses possible applications of these results in the 5.0 manufacturing sector, emphasizing the importance of adopting a holistic human-centered approach to understand the human-cobot complex better.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/frobt.2023.1275572/fullhuman factorsergonomic workstationscollaborative robotsmental workloadpsychophysiology |
| spellingShingle | Patrik Pluchino Patrik Pluchino Gabriella F. A. Pernice Federica Nenna Michele Mingardi Alice Bettelli Davide Bacchin Anna Spagnolli Anna Spagnolli Giulio Jacucci Andrea Ragazzon Leonardo Miglioranzi Carlo Pettenon Luciano Gamberini Luciano Gamberini Advanced workstations and collaborative robots: exploiting eye-tracking and cardiac activity indices to unveil senior workers’ mental workload in assembly tasks Frontiers in Robotics and AI human factors ergonomic workstations collaborative robots mental workload psychophysiology |
| title | Advanced workstations and collaborative robots: exploiting eye-tracking and cardiac activity indices to unveil senior workers’ mental workload in assembly tasks |
| title_full | Advanced workstations and collaborative robots: exploiting eye-tracking and cardiac activity indices to unveil senior workers’ mental workload in assembly tasks |
| title_fullStr | Advanced workstations and collaborative robots: exploiting eye-tracking and cardiac activity indices to unveil senior workers’ mental workload in assembly tasks |
| title_full_unstemmed | Advanced workstations and collaborative robots: exploiting eye-tracking and cardiac activity indices to unveil senior workers’ mental workload in assembly tasks |
| title_short | Advanced workstations and collaborative robots: exploiting eye-tracking and cardiac activity indices to unveil senior workers’ mental workload in assembly tasks |
| title_sort | advanced workstations and collaborative robots exploiting eye tracking and cardiac activity indices to unveil senior workers mental workload in assembly tasks |
| topic | human factors ergonomic workstations collaborative robots mental workload psychophysiology |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/frobt.2023.1275572/full |
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