The Impact of Human-Robot Collaboration Levels on Postural Stability During Working Tasks Performed While Standing:...

Area of Science:

• Human-robot interaction
• Occupational biomechanics
• Industrial robotics

Background:

• Collaborative robots (cobots) integration in industry can enhance worker safety and efficiency.
• Optimizing cobot use requires understanding impacts of human-robot collaboration levels on postural control and biomechanical risk.

Purpose of the Study:

• Investigate biomechanical effects of varying human-robot collaboration levels on postural stability and control.
• Analyze impacts during simulated industrial tasks.

Main Methods:

• 14 participants performed simulated cashier tasks under 4 cobot assistance levels (full, half robot touch, half robot, full robot).
• Center of pressure trajectories analyzed using posturography parameters (MDIST, MVELO, AREA-CE, AREA-SW) from force plate data.

Main Results:

• Cobot assistance significantly affected all 4 posturography parameters.
• Full robot assistance (FRb) maximally enhanced postural stability, significantly reducing MDIST, MVELO, AREA-CE, and AREA-SW.
• FRb reduced interindividual variability in postural control parameters and object handling load.

Conclusions:

• Increased cobot assistance significantly improves postural stability and reduces biomechanical load.
• Full cobot assistance maximizes stability but may reduce natural movement variation, potentially causing long-term discomfort.
• Mid-level cobot assistance offers a balance between reducing biomechanical risks and maintaining user control.