Smart Digital Assistance Devices for the Support of Machine Operation Processes at Future Production Workplaces

Digitalization of production changes the scope of human-machine interaction, frequently leading to increasing informational load. The present article describes a study which investigated smart digital assistance (SDA) devices regarding usability, subjective strain, performance and reaction time while conducting a simultaneous machine monitoring and assembly task. Results reveal that subjective mental strain and reaction times were positively affected by means of SDA usage and showed significant differences independent from SDA type. Performance significantly increased when data glasses were used. Significant differences were further shown in usability when using smartwatch compared to data glasses. Findings show that SDA device implementation in industrial practice potentially has a positive benefit for productivity.