Ergonomic Evaluation of body postures in order picking systems using Motion Capturing

Industry 4.0 is ushering in a new era of digitization, automation of machines and also provides autonomy in industrial processes. Despite these advances, the processes within order picking systems remain largely manual. Human cognitive and motor skills are difficult to replace and human flexibility is needed on the shop floor. It is well known that manual work requirements in intralogistics can lead to physical strain and in the long run to physical impairments such as musculoskeletal disorders. The aim of this article is to digitize the well-known ergonomics analysis tool Key Indicator Method (KIM) in order to obtain an automated evaluation and thus standardize the ergonomics assessment procedure in the future. For this purpose, a Motion Capture (MoCap) System will be used in a study where a manual picking process is simulated. With the help of this system, the course of a joint angle on the example of the spine during picking is analysed. The results are assessed on the basis of existing ergonomic standards and guidelines. At the same time, the KIM is performed by two ergonomics experts to validate the results of the MoCap system and to check the suitability of the system for ergonomic analysis.