In the last decade, a growing number of studies focused on the qualitative/quantitative analysis of bibliometric-database errors. Most of these studies relied on the identification and (manual) examination of relatively limited samples of errors. Using an automated procedure, we collected a large corpus of more than 10,000 errors in the two multidisciplinary databases Scopus and Web of Science (WoS), mainly including articles in the Engineering-Manufacturing field. Based on the manual examination of a portion (of about 10%) of these errors, this paper provides a preliminary analysis and classification, identifying similarities and differences between Scopus and WoS. The analysis reveals interesting results, such as: (i) although Scopus seems more accurate than WoS, it tends to forget to index more papers, causing the loss of the relevant citations given/obtained, (ii) both databases have relatively serious problems in managing the so-called Online-First articles, and (iii) lack of correlation between databases, regarding the distribution of the errors in several error categories. The description is supported by practical examples concerning a variety of errors in the Scopus and WoS database
8 August 2014 in International Journal of Precision Engineering and Manufacturing
Within the context of Industry 4.0 and of the new emerging Industry 5.0, human factors are becoming increasingly important, especially in Human-Robot Collaboration (HRC). This paper provides a novel study focused on the human aspects involved in industrial HRC by exploring the effects of various HRC setting factors. In particular, this paper aims at investigating the impact of industrial HRC on user experience, affective state, and stress, assessed through both subjective measures (i.e., questionnaires) and objective ones (i.e., physiological signals). A collaborative assembly task was implemented with different configurations, in which the robot movement speed, the distance between the operator and the robot workspace, and the control of the task execution time were varied. Forty-two participants were involved in the study and provided feedbacks on interaction quality and their affective state. Participants’ physiological responses (i.e., electrodermal activity and heart rate) were also collected non-invasively to monitor the amount of stress generated by the interaction. Analysis of both subjective and objective responses revealed how the configuration factors considered influence them. Robot movement speed and control of the task execution time resulted to be the most influential factors. The results also showed the need for customization of HRC to improve ergonomics, both psychological and physical, and the well-being of the operator.
9 September 2022 in Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, Part B: Journal of Engineering Manufacture
The introduction of collaborative robots aims to make production more flexible, promoting a greater interaction between humans and robots also from physical point of view. However, working closely with a robot may lead to the creation of stressful situations for the operator, which can negatively affect task performance. In Human-Robot Interaction (HRI), robots are expected to be socially intelligent, that is, capable of understanding and reacting accordingly to human social and affective clues. This ability can be exploited implementing affective computing, which concerns the development of systems able to recognize, interpret, process, and simulate human affects. Social intelligence is essential for robots to establish a natural interaction with people in several contexts, including the manufacturing sector with the emergence of Industry 5.0. In order to take full advantage of the human-robot collaboration, the robotic system should be able to perceive the psycho-emotional and mental state of the operator through different sensing modalities (e.g. facial expressions, body language, voice, or physiological signals) and to adapt its behavior accordingly. The development of socially intelligent collaborative robots in the manufacturing sector can lead to a symbiotic human-robot collaboration, arising several research challenges that still need to be addressed. The goals of this paper are the following: (i) providing an overview of affective computing implementation in HRI; (ii) analyzing the state-of-art on this topic in different application contexts (e.g. healthcare, service applications, and manufacturing); (iii) highlighting research challenges for the manufacturing sector.