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- Brolin, Anna
(författare)
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An investigation of cognitive aspects affecting human performance in manual assembly
- 2016
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Modern manufacturing systems seem to be shifting from mass production to mass customisation, which means that systems must be able to manage changes in customer demands and requirements, new technology as well as environmental demands. This in turn leads to an increase in product variants that need to be assembled. To handle this issue, well designed and presented information is vital for assembly workers to perform effective and accurate assembly tasks. In this thesis the main focus has been to find factors that affect human performance in manual assembly. A literature review was made on the subject of manufacturing and usability as well as basic cognitive abilities used to utilise information, such as memory. This investigation identified applicable factors for assessing human cognitive performance within the research field of manufacturing. The thesis further investigates how some of these factors are handled in manual assembly, using case studies as well as observational studies. The results show that how material and information are presented to the assembler needs to be considered in order to have a positive effect on the assembly operation. In addition, a full factorial experimental study was conducted to investigate different ways of presenting material and information at the workstation while using mixed assembly mode with product variants. The material presentation factor involved the use of a material rack compared to using an unstructured kit as well as a structured kit and the information presentation factor involved using a text and number instruction compared to a photograph instruction. The results showed that using a kit is favourable compared to the traditional material rack, especially when using a structured kit combined with photographic instruction. Furthermore, the use of unstructured kits can lead to better productivity and reduced perceived workload, compared to a material rack. Although they are perhaps not as good as using a structured kit, they most likely bring a lower cost, such as man-hour consumption and space requirements. However, the number of components in an unstructured kit needs to be considered in order to keep it on a manageable level. As a conclusion, several scenarios were developed in order to understand how different assembly settings can be used in order to improve human performance at the assembly workstation.
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- Brolin, Anna, et al.
(författare)
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Cognitive Aspects Affecting Human Performance in Manual Assembly
- 2016
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Ingår i: Advances in Manufacturing Technology XXX. - : IOS Press. - 9781614996675 - 9781614996682 ; , s. 231-236
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- This paper concerns the handling of information in assembly work environments. Several studies involving both literature reviews, case studies andobservations were conducted to find factors that affect human performance in manual assembly. The main experiment with 36 subjects used a mixed method design with a quantitative study, including time and errors as dependant measures,a qualitative study, including workload ratings, and a questionnaire. The experiment involved the assembly of a pedal car and the components werepresented using structured kits, unstructured kits and material racks. Assembly information was presented as text & component numbers or photographs, and situations with and without component variation were considered. Among theresults it was found that assembly times and workload ratings were lower when using a kit, whereas using a material rack resulted in perceived decreased workflow and increased stress and frustration. Assembly times and workload ratings were lower when using photographs, whereas using text and numbers increased mental workload.
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- Brolin, Anna, et al.
(författare)
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Experimental study of cognitive aspects affecting human performance in manual assembly
- 2017
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Ingår i: Production & Manufacturing Research. - : Taylor & Francis. - 2169-3277. ; 5:1, s. 141-163
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- This study investigate different ways of presenting material and information at workstations while using mixed assembly mode with product variants. The experimental set up annotated an assembly line involving 36 subjects. The material presentation factor involved the use of a material rack compared to using an unstructured kit as well as a structured kit. The information presentation factor involved using a text and number instruction compared to a photograph instruction, and situations with and without component variation were considered. Results show that assembly times and workload ratings were lower when using a kit, whereas using a material rack resulted in perceived decreased workflow and increased stress and frustration. Moreover, assembly times and workload ratings were lower when using photographs, whereas using text and numbers increased mental workload. The results could be useful when planning work places and production systems in order to obtain a better workflow and an increased human performance.
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- Brolin, Anna, Dr., et al.
(författare)
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Interaction Effects Affecting Human Performance in Manual Assembly
- 2018
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Ingår i: Advances in Manufacturing Technology XXXII. - Amsterdam, Netherlands : IOS Press. - 9781614999010 - 9781614999027 ; , s. 265-270
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- This paper presents an experimental study aimed at investigating interaction effects affecting personnel in manual assembly. The main experiment with 36 subjects used a mixed method design which included a quantitative study, including time and errors as dependent measures, and a qualitative study, including workload ratings and a questionnaire. The overall task in the experiment was to assemble components on a pedal car. The main factors involved were assembly information (text & component numbers or photographs), material presentation (using structured kits, unstructured kits and material racks) and component variation (situations with and without component variation). It was found that performance, measured in assembly time, was best when combining photographs with no component variants and when using an unstructured kit.
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- Brolin, Anna, et al.
(författare)
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Kitting as an information source in manual assembly
- 2012
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Ingår i: Advances in Ergonomics in Manufacturing. - : CRC Press. - 9781439870396 - 9780429107603 - 143987039X ; , s. 346-353
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Bokkapitel (refereegranskat)abstract
- In manual assembly, a strategy to meet the goal of efficient production is the increased use of kitting as a material supply principle. Even though kitting is already implemented in industry, there are still uncertainties regarding the effects of introducing kits, particularly from a human factors perspective.This paper presents initial steps in the development of a method to be used for the evaluation of kitting. This from an information source point of view and for studying effects related to productivity and quality. The methodology is projected to act as a foundation for how to carry out a subsequent comprehensive case study. The purpose of the case study is to explore how kitting affects the cognitive workload compared to the ordinary material rack combined with part numbers used in the current manufacturing industry. This is done by measuring productivity; time spent on assembling a product, and quality; number of assembly errors. One step in the methodology development process, which is described in this paper, was to conduct a pilot study, primarily to test the methodology related to the selection of measurement parameters, as well as for getting experiences from running the methodology with real test subjects.
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- Brolin, Anna, et al.
(författare)
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Use of kitting to ease assemblers' cognitive workload
- 2011
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Ingår i: Proceedings of NES2011 September 18—21, 2011 Oulu, Finland. - : University of Oulu. - 9789514295416 ; , s. 77-82
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- The higher level of product variation in the automotive industry leads to an increasing workload for the assembler that has to search, fetch and assemble all the variants. This puts high demands on the information that is given to the assembler to fulfil the assembly task. This paper describes the impact of information overload and sources, and their influence on the assembler. Through observations conducted in the Swedish automotive industry, the study has shown that the assembly personnel perceive the kit as structured information and that structured kits are able to present distinct information at a certain place to the assembler, which in turn reduces the searching, resulting in decreased cognitive workload.
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- Bäckstrand, Gunnar, et al.
(författare)
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Attention, Interpreting, Decision-Making and Acting in Manual Assembly
- 2006
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Ingår i: Proceedings of the 23rd International Manufacturing Conference: IMC 23. - : University of Ulster. ; , s. 165-172
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- In a modern manufacturing environment, data and information are a vital part of the manufacturing process and in particular for supporting the value adding activities. Modern manufacturing information systems allow fast distribution of, and access to, data and information. However, the technical improvements of manufacturing information systems do not always create the benefits that were expected from them. This paper discusses this problem in the context of manual assembly tasks. Attention, interpretation and decision-making are important drivers for how well the assembly tasks are performed - the acting. In other words, the acting is governed by how and when the attention of the assembly operator is caught, how easily the information can be interpreted, and to what extent the information is useful for decision making. The aim with the work is to find and present why data and information provided on the shop floor often fails to prevent quality problems; not seldom this data and information actually causes the problems. This paper focuses on one of the core issues related to assembly data and information, namely “active attention” and how this is triggered. If active information seeking behaviour is not present on the assembly shop floor, then the probability for a quality problem increases.
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