Verena Nitsch

RWTH Aachen University · Chair and Institute of Industrial Engineering and Ergonomics

Human task performance with teleoperation systems is characterized by long task completion times, handling errors and excessive force application to objects in the remote environment. Haptic interfaces promise to address these challenges by providing the human user with sensory feedback from the remote environment that would otherwise be lacking. U...

Modern manufacturing systems are becoming increasingly complex due to an increasing demand for flexible and, at the same time, efficient production. In order to efficiently integrate older and limited employees into the production process, a good introduction to the systems is necessary. This chapter presents an adaptive virtual training system to...

Objective The present study investigated how pupil size and heart rate variability (HRV) can contribute to the prediction of operator performance. We illustrate how focusing on mental effort as the conceptual link between physiological measures and task performance can align relevant empirical findings across research domains. Background Physiolog...

An important goal of the Regional Competence Center AKzentE4.0 is to support companies in the Rhineland region in designing their digital transformation in a human-friendly way based on scientific findings. In order to derive evidence-based guidelines for the humane design of AI-supported work, further insights are needed into how the use of AI aff...

Industry 4.0 has initiated a data-driven transformation of production systems. With AI applications capitalizing on the surge of data availability, their introduction is reshaping workplaces and altering work tasks and profiles around the world. As AI-driven automation of work proliferates, so does the potential for the substitution of human labor....

Workforce scheduling is becoming increasingly complex and time-consuming as the number of influencing factors increases. Intelligent, algorithmic optimization approaches can support managers in mastering this complex task. Since workforce scheduling influences key elements of work design, it has the potential to promote human-centered work design a...

Kurzfassung: Feuerwehrfrauen haben ein erheblich größeres Unfallrisiko als Feuerwehrmänner. Frauen verletzen sich schwerer und in anderen Situationen. Es wird vermutet, dass diese unterschiedlichen Verletzungs-risiken unter anderem auf eine für Frauen schlechter geeignete Feuerwehr-schutzbekleidung zurückzuführen sind. Um dies näher zu beleuchten,...

Führungskräfte nehmen in vielen betrieblichen Prozessen eine besondere Rolle ein. Sie tragen die Verantwortung für die Unternehmensziele und den Erfolg ihres Arbeitsbereichs, gestalten Veränderungsprozesse und die Unternehmenskultur und sind mitverantwortlich für die Leistungsfähigkeit, Arbeitszufriedenheit und Gesundheit ihrer Mitarbeiterinnen und...

Seit 2020 werden bundesweit Regionale Kompetenzzentren der Arbeitsforschung (ReKodA) gefördert, um die Gestaltungspotenziale neuer Technologien auf die Arbeitswelt zu erforschen, den digitalen Wandel zu begleiten und den Transfer von Forschungsergebnissen in die betriebliche Praxis zu unterstützen. Die ReKodA adressieren auch die Sustainable Develo...

In einer quantitativen Fragebogenstudie wurden 472 Teilnehmende zum Einsatz von Systemen der künstlichen Intelligenz (KI) in Entscheidungsprozessen befragt. Erhoben wurden u. a. Items zum Vertrauen und Nutzen beim Einsatz einer KI, zur Qualität des Entscheidungsprozesses sowie zu möglichen Rollen einer KI im Rahmen einer Team-Entscheidung. Die Erg...

Automated vehicles offer many advantages, but also entail an increased risk of motion sickness. To avoid such an aversive experience, early and reliable detection of individual states of motion sickness is required to initiate appropriate countermeasures. To this end, a study was conducted to investigate different measures of motion sickness while...

Kurzfassung: Die Agenda 2030 der Vereinten Nationen zielt darauf ab, die Welt nachhaltig zu entwickeln, wobei die 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) eine Schlüsselrolle spielen. SDG 17 betont hierbei die Bedeutung partnerschaftlicher Zusammenarbeit. In Deutschland fördert das BMBF seit 202 die Regionalen Kompetenzzentren der Arbeitsforschung (...

Understanding the mechanisms of work interruptions is crucial for reducing employee strain and maintaining performance. For this purpose, a study was conducted that examined how different interruptions and different characteristics of an interruption affect employees’ self-reported exhaustion. Specifically, a survey examined the effect of work inte...

The pupil diameter has been shown to provide insight to a person's experienced cognitive strain. Pupillary light responses, however, make this measure unreliable in uncontrolled settings. Two derived indicators—Index of Cognitive Activity (ICA) and Index of Pupillary Activity (IPA)—aim to ‘eliminate’ lighting influences, changing based only on the...

This paper presents a thorough review of electrical muscle stimulation (EMS) in the context of augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR), specifically focusing on its application in providing kinesthetic feedback. Our systematic review of 17 studies reveals the growing interest and potential of EMS in this domain, as evidenced by the growing...

Background: Research demonstrates that work interruptions are considered one of the most common work stressors. Understanding the mechanisms of work interruptions is therefore vital to reducing worker stress and maintaining performance. Objective: The aim of this research is to investigate the influence of the frequency of work interruptions on...

When using simulation-based assembly planning in the planning phase of designing modern assembly systems, the prospective system behavior should be predicted as reliably as possible by the simulation. For this purpose, personnel-related adjustment periods, such as those related to learning through task repetition should be considered in the simulat...

This paper presents a thorough review of Electrical Muscle Stimulation (EMS) in the context of Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR), specifically focusing on its application in providing kinesthetic feedback. Our systematic review of 17 studies reveals the growing interest and potential of EMS in this domain, as evidenced by the growing...

Predicting human decisions is a central challenge for planning and controlling production with weakly structured processes. Thus, workers’ decisions regarding the processing strategies and the temporal sequence of tasks to be processed are to be determined prospectively. Accordingly, there is a need to review methods for preference elicitation to d...

Physiological measures are often used to assess the mental state of human operators in supervisory process control tasks. However, the diversity of research approaches creates a heterogeneous landscape of empirical evidence. To map existing evidence and provide guidance to researchers and practitioners, this paper systematically reviews 109 empiric...

Mobile cobots can increase the potential for assembly work in industry. For human-friendly automation of cooperative assembly work, user-centered interfaces are necessary. The design process regarding user interfaces for mobile human-robot cooperation (HRC) shows large research gaps. In this article an exemplary approach is shown to design a graphi...

Einige Untersuchungen deuten darauf hin, dass Feuerwehrfrauen bei der Persönlichen Schutzausrüstung (PSA) schlechtere Bedingungen vorfinden als Männer. Sie fühlen sich in der Feuerwehrschutzbekleidung unsicherer und vertrauen ihr weniger (Schiffer, 2021, 2022). Gleichzeitig passt die Feuerwehrschutzbekleidung den Feuerwehrfrauen schlechter als Männ...

The increasing product variability and lack of skilled workers demand for autonomous, flexible production. Since assembly is considered a main cost driver and accounts for a major part of production time, research focuses on new technologies in assembly. The paradigm of Line-less Mobile Assembly Systems (LMAS) provides a solution for the future of...

The vision of the Internet of Production (IoP) is focused on optimizing manufacturing processes, with the help of Industry 4.0 technologies (I4Ts). However, considering global megatrends such as climate change and the need to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), it is a growing imperative for the manufacturing industry to become more s...

The COVID-19 pandemic engendered massive restrictions in all areas of our social and work lives. Companies and organizations have had to make extensive adjustments to their working conditions and processes. Fifty-two interviews at 33 companies and organizations were conducted to gain insights to help companies and organizations to cope with the pan...

Recent trends in globalization have led to an increased competitive pressure, particularly affecting the manufacturing industry. The Cluster of Excellence “Internet of Production” (IoP) aims at developing innovative solutions and reshaping production to enable local industries to thrive in a digitized world. These developments create new possibilit...

The Internet of Production (IoP), the global and integrated use of production data, will completely reshape how organizations operate and interact with each other. We introduce how these developments will affect the usage phase including value creation and capture in the future manufacturing ecosystem. Our analysis highlights requirements and impli...

Like all preceding transformations of the manufacturing industry, the large-scale usage of production data will reshape the role of humans within the sociotechnical production ecosystem. To ensure that this transformation creates work systems in which employees are empowered, productive, healthy, and motivated, the transformation must be guided by...

The implementation of new robotic technology at workplaces is oftentimes accompanied by social and organizational change processes. A new context-specific questionnaire was developed as a diagnostic tool to measure workers’ attitudes toward mobile cooperative manufacturing robots to provide a basis for managerial decisions and interventions—the “At...

The present data set contains 2,615 individual data records on accidents in the volunteer fire brigades of the German states of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania (Mecklenburg-Vorpommern), Rhineland-Palatinate (Rheinland-Pfalz), North Rhine-Westphalia (Nordrhein-Westfalen) and Schleswig-Holstein (Schleswig-Holstein) for the reporting year 2019. The raw...

While fitness tracker users consent to the processing of their sensitive data based on privacy policies, previous research has demonstrated that legal texts often remain unread or incomprehensible. This questions whether the given consent is indeed informed. While past research concentrated on improving privacy comprehension, our research aims to b...

Work interruptions are considered one of the most common work stressors, which is why understanding interruptions is crucial for the long-term health of employees. For this purpose, a survey was conducted to record work interruptions among N = 492 full-time employees in Germany. The results show that work interruptions are significantly negatively...

Der Trend der Digitalisierung gibt immer wieder neue Impulse für die berufliche Bildung. In dieser Machbarkeitsstudie wird an-hand eines Arbeitsprozesses aus der Metallbearbeitung untersucht, welche Grenzen und Möglichkeiten eine gegenwärtige Motion Capture (MoCap) Lösung für digitale Anwendungen in der beruflichen Bildung aufweist. Dazu wurden die...

Hohe Freiheitsgrade hinsichtlich des Entscheidungsspielraums von Arbeitspersonen erschweren die Prognose der Bearbeitungsreihenfolgen und der damit verbundenen Fertigstellungstermine in produzierenden Unternehmen. Der vorliegende Beitrag stellt ein Forschungsvorhaben über die Vorhersage der Aufgabenauswahl von Arbeitspersonen in der Kleinserien- un...

The increasing product variability and lack of skilled workers demand for autonomous, flexible production. Since assembly is considered a main cost driver and accounts for a major part of production time, research focuses on new technologies in assembly. The paradigm of Line-less Mobile Assembly Systems (LMAS) provides a solution for the future of...

Purpose Virtual collaboration in teams becomes increasingly popular at work. With the advantages of working in virtual teams come leadership challenges for which the shared leadership theory is discussed as a potential solution. While previous empirical studies investigating shared leadership in virtual teams generally confirm positive effects on t...

This is the eighth volume in the research book series Emerging Issues in Research on Vocational Education & Training. The series is published by the research group VETYL (Vocational Education & Training/Yrkeskunnande och Lärande), at the Department of Education, Stockholm University, Sweden. The research book series started primarily as disseminati...

Der Beitrag erörtert die Lernmedienentwicklung unter Nutzung einer Wntwicklungsmethodik für komplexe technische Produkte zur Unterstützung didaktischer Zielstellungen für die berufliche Bildung. Es wird eine konkrete Entwicklungsmaßnahme eines Augmented Reality Lernsystems zum Lernen aus Handlungsfehlern in der betrieblichen Ausbildung beschrieben....

Die Kapitel 1 und 5 wurden ursprünglich als nicht Open Access-Kapitel veröffentlicht, werden hiermit aber in eine Open Access Publikation unter der CC BY 4.0-Lizenz geändert; die Angabe des Copyright Holders wurde dementsprechend in „©Der/die Autor(en)“ angepasst.

In search and rescue missions, teleoperated rovers equipped with sensor technology are deployed into harsh environments to search for targets. To support the search task, unimodal/multimodal cues can be presented via visual, acoustic and/or haptic channels. However, human operators often perform the search task in parallel with the driving task, wh...

For the prevention of musculoskeletal disorders (MSD), the evaluation of manual materials handling (MMH) is important. Cumulative loading can be used to quantify exposure, but there is little applied research on its effectiveness in risk assessment. Therefore, this publication presents an analysis of whether cumulative loading estimates can be used...

Challenges in manual materials handling (MMH) are posed in particular by the requirements for continuous repetition and individual feedback. Low effort in MMH instructions is accordingly a relevant factor. The combination of a markerless motion capture system with a biomechanical model providing visual MMH instructions by individual real-time feedb...

Based on the results of a rigorous Delphi study, we present scenarios that portray a most probable future of Next Generation Manufacturing in 2030, enabled by connected data (digital shadows) shared in cross-organizational data spaces. We provide individual scenarios for the dimensions governance, organization, capabilities, interfaces, and resilie...

The text discusses the concept of hybrid intelligence, which is a form of collaboration between machines and humans. It describes how this concept can be used in manufacturing to help improve productivity. The text also discusses how this concept can be used to help humans learn from machines. There is a debate in the intelligence community about t...

Context: The paper introduces an augmented reality learning system that detects human vocational actions in company-based dual TVET. Based on digital twins in a simulation environment , a head-mounted display visualises simulated consequences of detected action errors while the system prevents consequences in reality. The learning system enables si...

Errors offer learning opportunities in company-based apprenticeships.Technical learning systems incorporating augmented reality are able to simulate and visualize harmful error consequences for learning purposes. In order to design effective learning situations with such a learning system, it is necessary to investigate current behaviour towards er...

High levels of mental workload can precipitate an inability to cope with job demands, increase the risk of serious mental and physical health issues, as well as contribute towards long-term sick leave, or early retirement. Monitoring health risk factors using psychophysiological measurement methods can raise individuals’ awareness of changes in the...

Zusammenfassung Die Digitalisierung, der demografische und soziale Wandel sowie die Globalisierung haben umfassende Auswirkungen auf die Arbeit und Wertschöpfung in Deutschland. Der Arbeitsforschung kommt damit eine besondere Bedeutung zu. Mit den speziellen Herausforderungen für Unternehmen des Mittelstandes befasst sich die Arbeitsforschung im Fo...

Although the objective assessment of mental workload has been a focus of human factors research, few studies have investigated stakeholders' attitudes towards its implementation in real workplaces. The present study addresses this research gap by surveying N = 702 managers in three European countries (Germany, United Kingdom, Spain) about their exp...

Background: Digital platforms have found their way into all our lives: they are discussed in political, economic, scientific and public fields worldwide. Platform-based work is also on the rise in the German labour market, not only in institutionalised work, but also in start-ups and spin-offs. Objectives: The article describes the results of an...

The technology use of older people is marked by stigmas. Whether in literature, films or even in science, the narrative of older people who cannot manage the simplest clicks and handles is omnipresent. Independent information search? Unrealistic - children and grandchildren are rather called for help. What if they no longer have a landline but only...

An important goal of the Industry 4.0 agenda is increased flexibility in production, which could be achieved, for example, through the use of robot systems that interact with humans. New methods of data acquisition, processing and modeling, such as those developed for the Internet of Production (IoP), open up new possibilities for human-robot inter...

Demographic change in Germany has been discussed on a grand scale in the past years. Feared and denied at first; research was conducted; approaches were presented, and measures derived. The health care sector is an area of special interest because demographic change is affecting it twice: on the one hand, more elderly patients have to be treated wh...

High levels of mental work stress have significant implications for employees and employers. Epidemiological studies consistently show links between high levels of work stress and self-reported mental and physical health problems, including depression, anxiety, cardiovascular disease, and type 2 diabetes. Therefore, helping employees to cope with m...

A recent literature review on personal space in human-robot interaction identified a research gap for the influence of contextual factors. At the same time, psychological research on interpersonal distancing as well as theoretical considerations based on compensatory control models suggest the importance to consider these factors in robot path plan...

Die Bewältigung von Komplexität zählt zu den größten Herausforderungen in modernen Produktionssystemen. Wenngleich Gruppenarbeit als Arbeitsorganisationsform in vielen produzierenden Unternehmen etabliert ist, liegen bislang nur wenige empirische Studien vor, die die Auswirkungen von Komplexität auf die Qualität der Zusammenarbeit und die Leistung...

Zur Evaluierungsplanung eines technischen Lernsystems für die berufliche Bildung werden zwei systematische Literaturrecherchen zum Stand der Forschung des Technologieakzeptanzmodells (TAM) in Kombination mit Selbstwirksamkeitserwartung (SWE) ausgeführt. Hierzu wird in einer ersten Studie im Anwendungsbereich Bildung eine Forschungslücke aufgezeigt,...

In der Produktion teilen sich Arbeitspersonen und Roboter zunehmend gemeinsame Arbeitsräume. Bislang mangelt es noch an Erkenntnissen zur Entwicklung gebrauchstauglicher Mensch-Maschine Schnittstellen, mit denen verschiedenartige Maschinen auch bei regelmäßigen, kurzzyklischen Wechseln medienbruchfrei bedient werden können. In diesem Artikel wird d...

There is a confidence crisis in many scientific disciplines, in particular disciplines researching human behavior, as many effects of original experiments have not been replicated successfully in large-scale replication studies. While human-robot interaction (HRI) is an interdisciplinary research field, the study of human behavior, cognition and em...

Die Prozessplanung produzierender Unternehmen wird durch zunehmende Komplexität und Individualisierung von Bauteilen und Maschinen geprägt. Daraus resultieren neue Anforderungen an die eingesetzten CAM-Systeme. Mit dem Ziel, Stärken und Schwächen der heutigen CAM-Planung aus Sicht der Beschäftigten zu identifizieren und für die Weiterentwicklung de...

Zusammenfassung Die Digitalisierung von Arbeitswelten erreicht alle Bereiche öffentlich oder privat finanzierter Forschung und Entwicklung. Insbesondere lassen neuartige Entwicklungen der künstlichen Intelligenz große Veränderungen im Alltag grundlagen- und anwendungsorientierter Forschung erwarten. Dennoch ist wissenschaftliche Forschung auch im Z...

Zusammenfassung Seit Jahrzehnten untersucht die arbeitswissenschaftliche Forschung die Auswirkungen des Digitalisierungstrends auf Beschäftigte und Arbeitsprozesse (siehe auch Mütze-Niewöhner und Nitsch 2020). Empirische Untersuchungen existieren bereits zu zahlreichen Funktionsbereichen (z. B. Produktion und Service) und Berufsgruppen (z. B. Elekt...

Today’s technological and societal developments are creating new possibilities for designing an economical, flexible and human-oriented work organization e.g. by facilitating more agile management concepts. Research has been concerned with participative leadership styles for many decades, and these have recently been gaining renewed relevance in me...

Managers in healthcare work in a daily field of tension characterized by the requirements of patients, their employees and other stakeholders. At the same time, they are permanently under great time pressure (Vincent-Höper et al., 2020). In addition, the fast pace of today’s world means that the required knowledge must be constantly revised or rele...

Transferring the idea of the Internet to the manufacturing landscape—the Internet of Production (IoP)—fundamentally changes our understanding of how products are developed, produced, and utilized. A key concept of the IoP is digital shadows that connect data, products, and equipment and are shared in cross-organizational data spaces. These developm...

With the advent of Next Generation Manufacturing, information and communications technologies have become an essential part of the production process, creating and providing data for all stakeholders. Given the high uncertainty in the likelihood of occurrence and the technical, economic, and societal impacts of associated transformations in product...