When to assist? - A human model for hybrid assembly systems

Over centuries it has been common usage that the cooperation of foreman and assistant increases the working efficiency. This is due to the mutual understanding of each others actions and intentions. Hence, an important first step for automation in this field is to develop models of this natural and adaptive assistance. An artificial system equipped with such models would enable higher acceptance, passive safety and efficiency. Towards this goal we investigated the most common physical interaction occurring in human-robot cooperation - the handing over of items. In experiments, the timing and interplay of different modalities during a typical assembly task were analysed. A first model to predict timings and motor programs has been develop [1][2].