b'DESIGNING SMART MACHINE OPERATOR INTERFACES IN A DISRUPTIVE TECHNOLOGY WORLDAccording to the ARC Advisory Group, multiple global digitization trends - the Industrial Internet of Things, the connection of more mobile devices, multi-touchtechnology,cloudcomputing,and BigDataanalytics-arepropellingmarket growth.However,ifmachinebuildershopeto share in this growth opportunity, an evolution in operatorinterfacedesignwillberequiredto provide a window for achieving the productivity benets of smart machines. Design changes will include the incorporation of dash-boards that reect inputs from multiple external dataChanging end user business streams and that present data analysis outputs. OEMrequirements are driving operator machine interface design focus will require a shift from ainterface innovationmachine-centrictoamoreoperator-centricpointof view.Machine function no longer consists only of componentMovingforward,manufacturingsiteswillrequirethat control but should also encompass the monitoring andmachineoperatorsembraceabroaderscopeof analysisofproductionandperformancedata.Inthisresponsibilities.Fulllingthosetaskswilldependon way,whenoperatorsandmachinesareinteracting,visibility to multiple machines that inuence a particular adjustments to machine operations can be made morefunction or process. As older employees retire and are precise and ecient. replacedbylessexperiencedmillennials,operator interfacesimplicationwillberequiredtoincrease Breakthroughsincobotsandmobilecobots,5Goperator eciency while reducing the time needed to networks, indoor geo-localization, cloud and edgeexecute specic tasks. The increased eciency will be computing,augmentedreality,articialintelli- made possible through enhanced device exibility. The gence and machine learning are forcing a re-evalua- best way to attain that exibility is to design operator tion of the best methods for designing the new genera- interfaces that are highly customizable.tion of machine interfaces. These new technologies will impact the entire range of digitized interfaces. As interface devices become more connected and more mobile (consider the new wave of wearable, interactive devices on the consumer front), security and safety will Article by Prafull Sharma | also become a greater concern. New levels of protection Prafull is the global leader of a passionate &frombothphysicalandcyberthreatsneedtobe transverse team dedicated to serve IIoT Solutions in Machine, Discrete andaccounted for in the design of more modern operator Processing Manufacturing. interfaces.12'