Einsatz von digitalen Assistenzsystemen im Betrieb
Against the background of digitalization and industry 4.0, the world of work changes comprehensively. The development is characterised not only by questions of the potential substitutability of humans by technical systems, but also by the possibilities of an ever closer cooperation between man and machine, with the aim of combining the outstanding abilities of man with the special characteristics of machines as "best from two worlds ". This also means that the human being is supported by technical systems, which, in an ideal situation, exactly match his abilities and needs, as well as the requirements of the working context.
In order to meet this demand, digital assistance systems have been increasingly used in the last years. The most prominent applications are systems for worker guidance (pickby-light and related), which are used, for example, in multi-variant assembly. Moreover, it is to be expected that, due to the ongoing technological development, especially cognitive support functions will no longer be bound to specific devices in the future, but that the assistance will be realised by means of comprehensive software integration and a common data space on almost every technical device, independent of whether it is a machine tool or a smartphone.
To describe the stage of development for digital assistance systems and assess their contribution to inclusion/diversity, health and work quality, a classification scheme was developed in the present study according to type of support (physical, sensory, cognitive), degree of support (low, medium, high, variable) and objective of support (compensatory, sustaining, expanding) and Building on this, the potentials of digital assistance systems are illustrated by 16 practical examples and success factors for the operational implementation are discussed. Finally, policy measure to unlock potentials for more participation, higher quality of work and healthier work in the course of a further diffusion of digital assistance systems in businesses and to support the establishment of a lead market in Germany for good digitally assisted work are presented.