Emerging Ergonomics Issues and Opportunities in Mining

Ergonomics is the scientific discipline that investigates the interactions between humans and systems to optimize both human and system performance for worker safety, health, and productivity. Ergonomics is frequently involved either in the design of emerging technologies or in strategies to alleviate unanticipated human performance problems with emerging technologies. This manuscript explores several such emerging issues and opportunities in the context of the mining sector. In mining, the equipment, tools, and procedures have changed considerably and continue to change. Body-worn technology provides a number of opportunities to advance the safety and health of miners, while teleoperation and autonomous mining equipment stand to benefit significantly from ergonomics applications in other sectors. This manuscript focuses on those issues and opportunities that can impact the safety and health of miners in the near term.

[1]  Mark Dunn,et al.  Longwall automation: trends, challenges and opportunities , 2017 .

[3]  Waldemar Karwowski,et al.  Effects of computerized automation and robotics on safety performance of a manufacturing plant , 1988 .

[4]  Colin G Drury,et al.  Development of ergonomics audits for bagging, haul truck and maintenance and repair operations in mining , 2017, Ergonomics.

[5]  Luka Pravica,et al.  Assessing the impact of driverless haul trucks in Australian surface mining , 2011 .

[6]  Jack P Callaghan,et al.  The impact of sit-stand office workstations on worker discomfort and productivity: a review. , 2014, Applied ergonomics.

[7]  Richard F. Sesek,et al.  Barriers to the Adoption of Wearable Sensors in the Workplace: A Survey of Occupational Safety and Health Professionals , 2018, Hum. Factors.

[8]  Sanders,et al.  Human factors in mining , 1988 .

[9]  Yi-Tao Long,et al.  Wearable Chemosensors: A Review of Recent Progress , 2017, ChemistryOpen.

[10]  Tim Horberry,et al.  Understanding Human Error in Mine Safety , 2009 .

[11]  Lisanne Bainbridge,et al.  Ironies of automation , 1982, Autom..

[12]  Leila Alem,et al.  Tele-operation of a mobile mining robot using a panoramic display: an exploration of operators sense of presence , 2011, 2011 IEEE International Conference on Automation Science and Engineering.

[13]  Nicolaas P. Pronk,et al.  Design Recommendations for Active Workplaces , 2015 .

[14]  Christian Larue,et al.  Effect of local magnetic field disturbances on inertial measurement units accuracy. , 2017, Applied ergonomics.

[15]  Robin Burgess-Limerick,et al.  Participative ergonomics for manual tasks in coal mining , 2005 .

[16]  Houtan Jebelli,et al.  Feasibility analysis of heart rate monitoring of construction workers using a photoplethysmography (PPG) sensor embedded in a wristband-type activity tracker , 2016 .

[17]  Peter I. Corke,et al.  Autonomous control of underground mining vehicles using reactive navigation , 2000, Proceedings 2000 ICRA. Millennium Conference. IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation. Symposia Proceedings (Cat. No.00CH37065).

[18]  Christopher D. Wickens,et al.  A model for types and levels of human interaction with automation , 2000, IEEE Trans. Syst. Man Cybern. Part A.

[19]  Tomas Engström,et al.  Increasing the degree of automation in a production system: Consequences for the physical workload , 2006 .

[20]  Peter I. Corke,et al.  Automation of an underground mining vehicle using reactive navigation and opportunistic localization , 2003, Proceedings 2003 IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS 2003) (Cat. No.03CH37453).

[21]  Hugh F. Durrant-Whyte,et al.  An experiment in autonomous navigation of an underground mining vehicle , 1999, IEEE Trans. Robotics Autom..

[22]  Tim Horberry,et al.  Human Factors for the Design, Operation, and Maintenance of Mining Equipment , 2010 .

[23]  Tim Horberry,et al.  Mining automation human-systems integration: a case study of success at CMOC-Northparkes , 2017 .

[24]  Changbum R. Ahn,et al.  Comprehensive Fall-Risk Assessment of Construction Workers Using Inertial Measurement Units: Validation of the Gait-Stability Metric to Assess the Fall Risk of Iron Workers , 2016, J. Comput. Civ. Eng..

[25]  Hong Zhang,et al.  Wearable IMU-based real-time motion warning system for construction workers' musculoskeletal disorders prevention , 2017 .

[26]  Shyamal Patel,et al.  A review of wearable sensors and systems with application in rehabilitation , 2012, Journal of NeuroEngineering and Rehabilitation.

[27]  Meng Zhang,et al.  Investigation of haul truck-related fatal accidents in surface mining using fault tree analysis , 2014 .

[28]  Maury A. Nussbaum,et al.  Industrial Exoskeletons: Are We Ready for Prime Time Yet? , 2017 .

[29]  Adam P. Cann,et al.  Whole-body vibration exposure experienced by mining equipment operators , 2006 .

[30]  James C. Taylor,et al.  Performance By Design: Sociotechnical Systems In North America , 1992 .

[31]  Patrick G. Dempsey,et al.  Inter-Rater Reliability of Video-Based Ergonomic Job Analysis for Maintenance Work in Mineral Processing and Coal Preparation Plants , 2012 .

[32]  Earl L. Wiener,et al.  Human factors of advanced technology (glass cockpit) transport aircraft , 1989 .

[33]  Karl E Friedl,et al.  Wearable physiological monitoring for human thermal-work strain optimization. , 2018, Journal of applied physiology.

[34]  William L. Porter,et al.  An Analysis of Injuries to Haul Truck Operators in the U.S. Mining Industry , 2010 .

[35]  A. L. Barrett,et al.  Evaluation of Four Weight Transfer Devices for Reducing Loads on Lower Back During Agricultural Stoop Labor , 2001 .

[36]  Patrick G. Dempsey,et al.  Effectiveness of ergonomics interventions to prevent musculoskeletal disorders: Beware of what you ask , 2007 .

[37]  Patrick G Dempsey,et al.  Analysis of physical demands during bulk bag closing and sealing. , 2016, International journal of industrial ergonomics.

[38]  Ivana Murković Steinberg,et al.  Wireless chemical sensors and biosensors: A review , 2018, Sensors and Actuators B: Chemical.

[39]  Sean Gallagher,et al.  Assessment of whole-body vibration exposures and influencing factors for quarry haul truck drivers and loader operators. , 2014, International journal of heavy vehicle systems.

[40]  Sungjoo Hwang,et al.  What drives construction workers' acceptance of wearable technologies in the workplace?: Indoor localization and wearable health devices for occupational safety and health , 2017 .

[41]  Richard E. Miller,et al.  Comparison Of Whole-Body Vibration Exposures On Older And Newer Haulage Trucks At An Aggregate Stone Quarry Operation , 2008 .

[42]  Patrick G Dempsey,et al.  Maintenance and repair injuries in US mining. , 2014, Journal of quality in maintenance engineering.

[43]  Teh Ying Wah,et al.  Data fusion and multiple classifier systems for human activity detection and health monitoring: Review and open research directions , 2019, Inf. Fusion.

[44]  Massimo Totaro,et al.  Soft Smart Garments for Lower Limb Joint Position Analysis , 2017, Sensors.

[45]  M. de Looze,et al.  Assessment of an active industrial exoskeleton to aid dynamic lifting and lowering manual handling tasks. , 2018, Applied Ergonomics.

[46]  Shrawan Kumar,et al.  Effects of progressive levels of industrial automation on force and repetitive movements of the wrist , 2000 .

[47]  P G Dempsey,et al.  Development of a model to determine oxygen consumption when crawling. , 2015, Transactions of Society for Mining, Metallurgy, and Exploration, Inc.

[48]  Robin Burgess-Limerick,et al.  Shape-Coding and Length-Coding as a Measure to Reduce the Probability of Selection Errors During the Control of Industrial Equipment , 2013 .

[49]  Tim Horberry,et al.  Human-Centered Design for Mining Equipment and New Technology , 2018 .

[50]  John R Heberger,et al.  The effects of operator position, pallet orientation, and palletizing condition on low back loads in manual bag palletizing operations. , 2015, International journal of industrial ergonomics.

[51]  Steve Mason,et al.  Understanding Human Error in Mine Safety , 2010 .

[52]  Asli Atalay,et al.  Piezofilm yarn sensor-integrated knitted fabric for healthcare applications , 2017 .

[53]  Xueke Wang,et al.  Biomechanical evaluation of exoskeleton use on loading of the lumbar spine. , 2018, Applied ergonomics.

[54]  Svend Erik Mathiassen,et al.  A case study evaluating the ergonomic and productivity impacts of partial automation strategies in the electronics industry , 2002 .

[55]  Zahra Sedighi Maman,et al.  A data-driven approach to modeling physical fatigue in the workplace using wearable sensors. , 2017, Applied ergonomics.

[56]  Frank Krause,et al.  Exoskeletons for industrial application and their potential effects on physical work load , 2016, Ergonomics.

[57]  Carmen Constantinescu,et al.  Challenges and Possible Solutions for Enhancing the Workplaces of the Future by Integrating Smart and Adaptive Exoskeletons , 2018 .

[58]  Eduardo Mario Nebot,et al.  Robotics in Mining , 2016, Springer Handbook of Robotics, 2nd Ed..

[59]  Mark Dunn,et al.  Longwall automation： Delivering enabling technology to achieve safer and more productive underground mining , 2015 .

[60]  Hassan Ghasemzadeh,et al.  Multi-sensor fusion in body sensor networks: State-of-the-art and research challenges , 2017, Inf. Fusion.

[61]  P. Kaur,et al.  Wearable Sensors for Monitoring Vital Signs of Patients , 2018 .

[62]  George R. S. Weir,et al.  ON MAN-MACHINE SYSTEMS , 2007 .