Interactive Robotics to Aid Physically Disabled People in Manufacturing Tasks

Automation is commonly considered for application in manufacturing industry as a means of increasing productivity on repetitive assembly tasks. Attempts to automate production processes fully have been hindered by the relatively slow development of suitable technology that is cost-effective in comparison with human labour. It is known that automation is successful for high volume, rigidly structured tasks that require little decision-making. It is not so successful in the less structured tasks where human decision-making plays an important role. It is in manufacturing scenarios that rely on human decision-making that people with impaired motor function may use appropriate handling devices to carry out limited manual tasks within a more complex job activity. Demographic changes are resulting in an ageing population, a shrinking labour force and, as a result, a need for industry to consider alternative sources of labour. Most previous attempts to use robots in vocational rehabilitation have been made on an individual basis where a person possessing a desired skill becomes disabled and is able to continue in the job with robot assistance. Since many people with severe physical disability from birth have a restricted primary and secondary education, it is unlikely that there will be widespread prospects in jobs such as computer programming or accounting. This is not to say that computer-oriented jobs are not ideal for some disabled people, particularly those who have attained a high level of job qualification prior to becoming disabled. The research described in this paper, however, aims to identify generic job activities that require human decision-making ability and that have a minimum of prerequisite educational qualifications. This scenario is typical of many of the jobs within the manufacturing sector that allow the worker to acquire the necessary job skills through on-the-job training.