From Human to Robot Interaction towards Human to Robot Communication in Assembly Systems

The interaction between humans and robots has been a rapidly developing technology and a frequently discussed research topic in the last decade because current robots ensure the physical safety of humans during close proximity assembly operations. This interaction promises capability flexibility due to human dexterity skills and capacity flexibility due to robot accuracy. Nevertheless, in these interactions, the humans are marginally outside of the system, while the robots are seen as a crucial component of the assembly activities, which causes the systems to lack flexibility and efficiency. Therefore, this paper presents a study on Human to Robot communication in assembly systems. We conducted a systematic review of related literature and industrial applications involving human and robot interaction modes over the last decade to identify research gaps in the integration of collaborative robots into assembly systems. We believe that we are in a transformation phase from physical interaction mode towards cognitive interaction mode between humans and robots, where humans and robots are able to interact with each other during mutual working conditions and humans are able to guide robots. The main contribution of this paper is to propose a future mode of human-robot interaction in which a skilled operator performs not only physical cooperative tasks with robots but also work aided by smart technologies that allow communication with robots. This interaction mode allows for an increase in the flexibility and productivity of the assembly operation as well as the wellbeing of the human operator in a human-centered manufacturing environment.