A User Study for the Evaluation of Adaptive Interaction Systems for Inclusive Industrial Workplaces

In recent years, production systems have become highly sophisticated and complex. As a result, while on the one hand, the least-skilled labor has been partially displaced by machines, high-skilled labor is more required to supervise and control advanced automation systems. In many cases, the complexity of machines implies an increased complexity of human-machine interfaces (HMIs), which are the main point of contact between the operator and the machine. To enable effective use of HMIs and to enable their usage by workers with different knowledge and capabilities, novel design approaches have been proposed. In particular, in this article, we consider the approach developed in the framework of the European research project INCLUSIVE, which aimed at designing industrial HMIs that adapt to the skills and capabilities of human operators. As a case study, we consider an adaptive interaction system for the woodworking industry and present an extensive evaluation carried out in real production environment with shopfloor workers. The effectiveness of the INCLUSIVE approach has been assessed with subjective and objective measurements and compared to that of interaction systems customarily used in industry. Results have shown that users appreciated the INCLUSIVE system and largely preferred it over the customary system. Moreover, with regard to objective performance-related measurements, they performed better when using the INCLUSIVE system since they received tailored guidance during the considered working tasks.