Why Consider the Human-in-the-loop in Automated Cyber-physical Production Systems? Two Cases from Cross-company Cooperation

Industry 4.0 and the Internet of Production can increase efficiency and effectiveness of workflows in manufac- turing companies and production networks. Despite ubiquitous automation, people are essential in socio-technical cyber-physical production systems due to unique cognitive capabilities, as final arbitrators, or for ethical and legal reasons. However, the design of interfaces between the human-in-the-loop and production systems poses challenges not yet been sufficiently elaborated in research and practice. We present two behavioural studies in the context of inter-company collaboration that show why con- sidering the human-in-the-loop is crucial: The first study shows that information complexity and individual differences shape the overall decision quality. With increasing information complexity, the decision speed decreases and the decision accuracy descends. Consequently, a fine balance between necessary, abundant, and superfluous information must be found. The second experiment studies human decision making in complex environments using a business simulation. We found that correct decision aids can augment the human-in-the-loop’s decision making and that these can increase usability, trust, and proft. Yet, incorrect decision support has the opposite effect. Guidelines for designing socio-technical cyber-physical production systems and a research agenda conclude this article.