Modeling agents as joint cognitive systems in smart manufacturing systems

Abstract Latest innovations and developments in Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) as well as Operational Technologies (OTs) are changing manufacturing forever. Ideas such as Industry 4.0 and the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) are attempting to impact, even dictate those changes. In this paper, we focus on the changes to the role of humans in their interactions with those innovations, known as Cyber-Physical Systems (CPSs) and Industry 4.0 technologies. We review the current interaction model based on Human-Machine Interfaces (HMI), and we propose a new model based on the engineering of Joint Cognitive Systems (JCS). Then, we discuss some of the implications of this new model for the modelling and control of smart manufacturing systems.