Human-AI Collaboration in Smart Manufacturing: Key Concepts and Framework for Design

Abstract

Demographical reasons and the increasing demand for improved production efficiency are steering the transformation within the manufacturing domain towards smart manufacturing. This entails introducing artificial intelligence (AI), data analytics, and automation to improve the efficiency, productivity, and flexibility of manufacturing processes. With the integration of AI, there is a shift from humans merely interacting with technology to actively collaborating with it, especially with AI-enabled agents. This shift brings changes in work practices and tasks. Hence, comprehensive understanding of the phenomenon becomes central for the design of human-AI collaboration that genuinely contributes to effective production and supports operators' well-being. This scoping review study aims to shed light to the evolving landscape of human-AI collaboration in smart manufacturing by presenting six key concepts derived from an analysis of 23 academic papers. Based on the findings, we propose a framework that offers an initial basis for the design of human-AI collaborative systems for smart manufacturing.