Challenge

The main issue in the existing approaches for cobot-based device testing is that the focus is on the “performances” (esp. endurance), which usually requires the repetition of some activities (like opening/closing the door of a device, like washing machine) and measuring if the activity can be performed properly (e.g. complete opening/closing).
This approach is clear from the point of view of the pure functionality of the device: the door has to be able to be opened/closed many (hundreds) times and this should be properly tested.
From the technology point of view, this testing is related to the problem of equipment degradation (wear). Indeed, the door cannot be opened/closed properly if some parts of the door (usually replacebar) are degrading until the level which is disabling a normal usage of the device.

Impact

It is a new approach for the collaboration between the cobots and operators based on human cognition.
In the robotic context, the impact is related to the realisation of the cognitive perception by the cobots, which offers more intelligence in sensing and opens new functionalities beyond just automatising the mundane, repetitive tasks of human operators.
The proposal tackles an important issue for the agile manufacturing: how the in-process product (quality) control can be driver for the innovation and not only the risk minimisation step. We argue that, by exploiting further the proposed concept of collaborative Intelligence, the product testing phase can be an important input for the product design phase, e.g. finding the ways for optimising user interaction or improving user experience.