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Human Factors, Ergonomics and Design

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“Human factors refer to environmental, organisational and job factors, and human and individual characteristics, which influence behaviour at work in a way which can affect health and safety”. Reducing error and influencing behavior is the key approach to human factors.

This definition includes three interrelated aspects that must be considered: the job, the individual and the organisation:

  • The job: including areas such as the nature of the task, workload, the working environment, the design of displays and controls, and the role of procedures. Tasks should be designed in accordance with ergonomic principles to take account of both human limitations and strengths. This includes matching the job to the physical and the mental strengths and limitations of people. Mental aspects would include perceptual, attentional and decision making requirements.
  • The individual: including his/her competence, skills, personality, attitude, and risk perception. Individual characteristics influence behaviour in complex ways. Some characteristics such as personality are fixed; others such as skills and attitudes may be changed or enhanced.
  • The organisation: including work patterns, the culture of the workplace, resources, communications, leadership and so on. Such factors are often overlooked during the design of jobs but have a significant influence on individual and group behaviour.

Human factors and ergonomics focuses on designing the world to better accommodate people. As a unique scientific discipline, human factors and ergonomics systematically applies the knowledge of human abilities and limitations to the design of systems with the goal of optimizing the interaction between people and other system elements to enhance safety, performance, and satisfaction.

In other words, human factors is concerned with what people are being asked to do (the task and its characteristics), who is doing it (the individual and their competence) and where they are working (the organisation and its attributes), all of which are influenced by the wider societal concern, both local and national.

Human factors are relevant anywhere people work with systems, whether they are social or technical in nature.  The breadth of these socio technical systems includes situations and circumstances where people interact with other system elements including:

  • Artifacts (e.g., tools, machines, products, software, etc.)
  • Tasks
  • Environments
  • Teams
  • Organizations
  • Legal (e.g., regulations, enforcement, etc.) and political
  • Aerospace
  • Automotive
  • Chemical
  • Computer
  • Consumer products
  • Construction
  • Defense
  • Industry
  • Healthcare
  • Manufacturing
  • Mining
  • Nuclear
  • Petroleum
  • Telecommunications
  • Textile

Human factors interventions will not be effective if they consider these aspects in isolation. The scope of what we mean by human factors includes organisational systems and is considerably broader than traditional views of human factors/ergonomics. Human factors can, and should, be included within a good safety management system and so can be examined in a similar way to any other risk control system.

History of Human Factors in ancient societies

The foundations of the science of ergonomics appear to have been laid within the context of the culture of Ancient Greece. A good deal of evidence indicates that Greek civilization in the 5th century BC used ergonomic principles in the design of their tools, jobs, and workplaces. One outstanding example of this can be found in the description Hippocrates gave of how a surgeon’s workplace should be designed and how the tools he uses should be arranged. The archaeological record also shows that the early Egyptian dynasties made tools and household equipment that illustrated ergonomic principles.

Human Factors: The Business Benefits

If you think safety’s expensive, try having an accident. Managing human failures is essential to prevent major accidents, occupational accidents and ill health, all of which can cost businesses money, reputation and potentially their continued existence.

Successful businesses achieve high productivity and quality while ensuring health and safety. Good technology combined with the best work systems can help to achieve these goals. The best work systems are based on having a skilled workforce, with well-designed jobs that are appropriate to individuals’ abilities.

Ergonomics and Design

According to the International Ergonomics Association, within the discipline of ergonomics there exist domains of specialization:

Physical ergonomics

Physical ergonomics is concerned with human anatomy, and some of the anthropometric, physiological and bio mechanical characteristics as they relate to physical activity. Physical ergonomic principles have been widely used in the design of both consumer and industrial products.

Cognitive ergonomics

Cognitive ergonomics is concerned with mental processes, such as perception, memory, reasoning, and motor response, as they affect interactions among humans and other elements of a system. (Relevant topics include mental workload, decision-making, skilled performance, human reliability, work stress and training as these may relate to human-system and Human-Computer Interaction design.)

Organizational ergonomics

Organizational ergonomics is concerned with the optimization of socio-technical systems, including their organizational structures, policies, and processes. (Relevant topics include communication, crew resource management, work design, work systems, design of working times, teamwork, participatory design, community ergonomics, cooperative work, new work programs, virtual organizations, telework, and quality management.)

The influence of biological, psychological and organisational factors on an individual at work can affect their health and safety, but it also affects their efficiency and productivity. For example, if:

  • Someone needs to exert a large proportion of their strength to complete a task they are more likely to suffer injury and carry out the task inefficiently – possibly causing damage to the product and tools.
  • The mental demands of a task are too high, perhaps involving diagnosing faults under significant time pressures then there can be both a health issue for the employee but also a quality, and possibly safety issue for the production line, process and plant.
  • Individuals have very limited scope for determining how to do their job then they may lack motivation and job satisfaction and be less effective at work.

Individuals have a wide range of abilities and limitations. A Human Factors (or Ergonomics) approach focuses on how to make the best use of these capabilities: by designing jobs and equipment which are fit for people. This not only improves their health and safety but often ensures a better managed, more effective organisation.

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Designer | Ideator | Thinker | Love Reading, Writing | Wildlife | Passionate about Learning New Stuff & Technologies. Feel free to comment below. Keep on visiting the blog for new articles. For suggestions and questions if you have any, then you can visit this link. (Disclaimer : My views are entirely my own and have nothing to do with any organisation)

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Development of Explainable AI (XAI)

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Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a rapidly evolving field that has the potential to change the way we live and work. The latest research in AI is focused on developing more advanced and sophisticated AI systems that can perform a wide range of tasks with greater accuracy and efficiency. 

One area of AI research that has gained a lot of attention in recent years is deep learning. This is a type of machine learning that uses neural networks to model complex patterns in data. Deep learning has been used to achieve breakthroughs in areas such as image recognition, natural language processing, and speech recognition. AI is also expected to have a significant impact on the field of robotics. Advancements in AI are making it possible to develop robots that can perform a wide range of tasks with greater autonomy and intelligence. This has the potential to revolutionize industries such as manufacturing, transportation, and healthcare

Another area of AI research that is attracting a lot of attention is the development of generative models. These are AI systems that can generate new data, such as images or text, based on what they have learned. This has the potential to revolutionize fields such as art and design, music, and writing. Another area of research is the development of explainable AI (XAI), which aims to make AI systems more transparent and understandable. This is important for ensuring that AI systems can be trusted and used responsibly. XAI has been recognised by AI researchers as a crucial component of reliable AI, and explainability has recently attracted more attention. To address growing ethical and legal concerns Explainable artificial intelligence (XAI) is a useful tool for as well as important How? and Why? questions about AI systems. However, despite the demand for explainability across several disciplines and the growing interest in XAI research, XAI still has a number of drawbacks.

The creation of AI systems that can clearly and transparently explain their decision-making processes is known as explainable AI (XAI). This is crucial in circumstances when an AI system’s decisions could have broad repercussions, such as in the legal, financial, and healthcare systems. Here are a few instances of XAI in action:

  • Healthcare: An AI system that diagnoses medical issues must be able to justify its findings by referencing the patient’s medical history, test results, and other pertinent information.
  • Finance: An AI system that evaluates loan applications must be able to clearly explain the reasons a loan was authorised or denied, taking into account elements like income and credit history.
  • Legal: An AI system that helps judges make sentencing decisions must be able to provide a clear explanation of how it arrived at its recommendations, taking into account factors such as the defendant’s prior criminal history, the circumstances of the crime, and relevant laws.

In each of these examples, the ability to explain the decision-making process of an AI system is critical for building trust and ensuring accountability.

It is important to be aware of the potential of this technology and actively seek ways to harness its power for the benefit of society as a whole. The latest research in AI is focused on developing more advanced and sophisticated AI systems that can perform a wide range of tasks with greater accuracy and efficiency. From deep learning, generative models, explainable AI and robotics, the potential applications of AI are vast and it is expected to play an even greater role in the coming years, leading to new and exciting opportunities for innovation and progress.

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Extended Reality (XR), an evolving technology

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Extended Reality, or XR, is a catch-all phrase that refers to a variety of technologies, including Virtual Reality (VR), Augmented Reality (AR), and Mixed Reality (MR). These innovations enable the development of immersive and interactive experiences that converge the real and virtual worlds. In the world of entertainment and gaming, XR has several applications. Virtual worlds and games that can transport users to other locations and eras can be created using VR and MR. The fields of training and education are further applications for XR. Users can learn and hone new abilities in a secure environment by using VR and AR to create realistic simulations and scenarios.

The performance and responsiveness of XR applications have recently improved because to the utilisation of edge computing and 5G. Edge computing allows data processing to occur closer to the user, which reduces latency and increases responsiveness. The use of AI and machine learning to enhance the realism and interactivity of XR experiences is another breakthrough. For instance, MIT researchers have created a virtual reality (VR) system that uses AI to create realistic scenes and characters that react to the user’s input in real time.

A rapidly developing technology, XR has numerous potential uses across numerous industries. There will probably be more advancements and use cases in the near future since it enables the construction of immersive and interactive experiences that blur the boundaries between the real and virtual worlds.

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Multi-material printing and innovation in hybrid manufacturing

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A type of 3D printing called multi-material additive manufacturing allows for the simultaneous printing of numerous materials, each with a variety of unique features. This technology has a wide range of applications and the power to completely alter how goods are created. The production of intricate and personalised products is one use for multi-material printing. It can be used, for instance, to print items with various textures, colours, and even degrees of hardness or flexibility. This makes it possible to produce items that would be challenging or impossible to make using conventional manufacturing techniques.

Engineering and prototyping both use multi-material printing. It can be used, for instance, to make workable prototypes of things like gears and bearings, that have different properties in a single print. This can greatly speed up the prototyping process and reduce the costs associated with creating multiple prototypes. Multi-material printing also has applications in the field of medicine. For example, it can be used to create customized prosthetics and other medical devices that have different properties in a single print. This allows for the creation of prosthetics that are more comfortable and functional for the patient.

New printing methods and materials have been used recently in multi-material printing. As an illustration, MIT researchers have created a technique for printing with several materials using a single nozzle, enabling the production of things with various qualities in a single print. the practise of “multi-material jetting,” which enables the use of a single print head to print numerous materials simultaneously. For instance, the J750 3D printer, and J850, which aims to “push the boundaries of 3D printed realism” from Stratasys can print with up to six different materials simultaneously, such as transparent materials, rigid and flexible plastics, and even color-changing materials.

Innovation in “hybrid manufacturing,” which mixes various production techniques including 3D printing, CNC machining, and casting to produce items with distinctive features. For example, researchers at the Technical University of Munich have developed a hybrid manufacturing process that allows for the printing of high-strength aluminium parts with embedded electronics. 

Multi-material printing is a rapidly evolving technology with many potential applications in a wide range of industries. It has the ability to produce complex and customized objects that would be difficult or impossible to create using traditional manufacturing methods, and it’s likely that we will see more developments in the near future. 

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