CoSiMMI – Co-simulation for predicting and biomechanically optimizing human-machine interaction

Initial situation

A user-centered approach to human-machine interface development aims to reduce user strain. The focus is on adapting product design to human requirements and needs. In practice, as exemplified by power tool development, it's evident that technical systems are often still insufficiently adapted to user requirements. Development typically proceeds from a functional-technical perspective, with ergonomic principles viewed as an additional cost factor. Virtualizing human-machine interaction could address this issue. Currently, the verification of new design adaptations primarily takes place in field studies, where prototypes of the new product generation are tested and evaluated by users. In other areas of product development, digital human models are already used to assess human strain in early development stages. However, in power tool development, application-specific digital human models that would enable such ergonomically oriented product design are still lacking.

Objective

The goal of the CoSiMMI project is to develop application-specific digital human models to enable time-efficient and cost-effective biomechanical optimization of electric hand tools. The project aims to develop a methodological approach that allows for co-simulation to predict posture and biomechanically optimize human-machine interaction during tasks involving electric hand tools.

Procedure

Within this project, biomechanical measurements of defined applications will initially be conducted. Based on these measurements, an application-specific simulation model for realistic posture prediction will be developed. The project will then develop a co-simulation environment that enables efficient data exchange between the posture model and the biomechanical model. A larger main study will use biomechanical measurement techniques to collect further datasets for generalizing the posture model. The measurement data will also serve for the comprehensive validation of the developed models.

Research partners

The research project is being carried out in cooperation with the Institute for Product Development (IPEK) of the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT).