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"Augmented Reality" For the Assembly Line
silkySlim writes "EETimes has a short article about a combination data goggles and earpiece device to replace big manuals and reduce training time for assembly line workers. 'In one possible scenario, a technician with data goggles bends over the engine block of a luxury car and removes the covering. He is receiving instructions through an ear piece telling him what to do next while his data goggles mark the screws and bolts on which he must next place his tool.' Apparently, it's already in use by several automotive companies. There's some additional papers also available."
I would be interested to see what in the way of technical writing and documentation goes into this sort of thing. It would force many technical writers to also focus on interface much more than they do now with standard Robohelp systems or other standard documentation.
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Talk to most anyone who works on an assembly line and they will tell you that their job is as boring as hell. Some might say that they almost feel like a machine themselves.
Contrast this with a labourer who builds furniture from scratch or a shoemaker and you find yourself in a different situation. While their actions are the same, their efforts have tangible results. If they have their own business selling what they've created the satisfaction runs deeper.
How are goggles shining lights in your face saying "Unscrew this next" going to make you feel any closer to the work that you're doing? It just seems like another level of detachment to me.
Why did the article discuss hardware problems but not social problems regarding the goggles?
Mind you, from a Slashdot geek perspective, the goggles are a cool idea, but I don't feel envious of the people who are going to have to use these things on an assembly line.
Sure its definately cool, but its scary too. Imagine directions being constantly spoken into your ear as you perform your job.
Human beings are not efficent organisms, neither in chemistry or psychology. You can't expect a human to act like a machine, something has got to give.
On Wall Street they say "buy low, sell high" On the pad we say, "buy high, sell high" Isn't that somehow better?
The real application for these is an on-demand assembly line to replace a multitude of expensive single product lines that probably don't need to run all the time.
Picture an automotive assembly line that has 300 assembly stations, each one of which gets the "next part" supplied by a chain driven conveyer bringing it to the station on a hook.
Jane, who takes care of placing and tightening down the intake manifold on the engine block in front of her, no longer has to either think about what torque to use, what bolt pattern, or really, anything. Follow the instructions, tighten the bolts per the visual overlay pattern at the designated torque, and on to the next block coming down the line and intake manifold coming off the parts conveyer belt.
The ultimate end of this is much like the Microsoft commercial where the guy in the showroom is picking whether he wants a black car or a red car, and the manufacturing plant is responding almost instantly. Now extend this to not beginning the production on a car until an order is placed, and it'll be ready that day for delivery to the customer's city.
And yes, this reduces Jane to a non-thinking bio-machine for the assembly line. That's the really awful part of this process.
Cast in the Name of Efficiency, Ye Not Cognizant.
Big Ugh.