Professor at Tallinn University of Technology (TalTech) since 2010. Holding a grant for National Chair of Manufacturing Engineering and leading Estonian research roadmap distributed infrastructure Smart Industry Centre. Have been involved as an expert evaluator by European Research Executive Agency in terms of Factories of the Future. Primary research interests areas are related to digitalisation of manufacturing industry (Smart Manufacturing, Industry 4.0, digital twins). 8 PhD students have defended their degrees under my supervision. Phone: +37253090118 Address: Ehitajate tee 5, Tallinn, 19086 Tallinn, Estonia
Technological developments are fast and at industry level we have fourth industrial revolution go... more Technological developments are fast and at industry level we have fourth industrial revolution going on. More and more new technologies are being applied to production to make it more efficient and more competitive. In order for new technologies to be better implemented and for the end user to be able to apply them to their industry, it is necessary for educational institutions to accompany the rapid development of technology and apply these new technologies in curricula.
Timber industry is one of the most relevant economic sectors in Estonia. Automatization of forest... more Timber industry is one of the most relevant economic sectors in Estonia. Automatization of forestry management and harvesting processes optimization are realities also in this specific domain. As much as in other industrial fields adopting the Industry 4.0 paradigm and core technologies, forestry management, log harvesting and the wood processing industry make use of state-of-the-art sensors, Digital Twins and advanced interfaces for the operators. The latter include Extended Reality solutions and remote-control making use of immersive head mounted displays (HMD). This works presents an innovative system for hydraulic forestry crane teleoperation making use of HMD and wide-angle camera stream. The system hardware is installed locally while the software, integrated in Unity, supports the operator in using the crane’s native joysticks and controller for the log loading operations. Additional virtual user interface and controls are included in the immersive view and accessible through ...
Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) is an early stage of cognitive abilities loss and puts older adul... more Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) is an early stage of cognitive abilities loss and puts older adults at higher risk of developing dementia. Virtual reality (VR) could represent a tool for the early assessment of this pathological condition and for administering cognitive training. This work presents a study evaluating the acceptance and the user experience of an immersive VR application representing a supermarket. As the same application had already been assessed in Italy, we aimed to perform the same study in Estonia in order to compare the outcomes in the two populations. Fifteen older adults with MCI were enrolled in one Rehabilitation Center of Estonia and tried the supermarket once. Afterwards, they were administered questionnaires aimed at evaluating their technology acceptance, sense of presence, and cybersickness. Estonian participants reported low side effects and discrete enjoyment, and a sense of presence. Nonetheless, their intention to use the technology decreased after ...
The adoption of Digital Twin (DT) solutions for industrial purposes is increasing among small- an... more The adoption of Digital Twin (DT) solutions for industrial purposes is increasing among small- and medium-sized enterprises and is already being integrated into many large-scale companies. As there is an increasing need for faster production and shortening of the learning curve for new emerging technologies, Virtual Reality (VR) interfaces for enterprise manufacturing DTs seem to be a good solution. Furthermore, with the emergence of Industry 5.0 (I5.0) paradigm, human operators will be increasingly integrated in the systems interfaces though advanced interactions, pervasive sensors, real time tracking and data acquisition. This scenario is especially relevant in collaborative automated systems where the introduction of immersive VR interfaces based on production cell DTs might provide a solution for the integration of the human factors in the modern industrial scenarios. This study presents experimental results of the comparison between users controlling a physical industrial robot...
The advent of Industry 4.0 is changing the role of human labour towards a more supportive functio... more The advent of Industry 4.0 is changing the role of human labour towards a more supportive function in the production system, requiring new digital-, technical-, interdisciplinary-, collaborative- and communicative competencies. This challenges educational institutions to develop new teaching activities and materials to address ever emerging needs. To address this, this paper presents an Educational Framework to support educators in developing new teaching activities and study material for Industry 4.0. The model distinguishes itself from other educational design models by combining an iterative approach toward problem-solving, with the concept of authentic task design, as the core elements. Based on 14 pilot cases, it is concluded that educational framework have increased the educational activities in the areas in focus.
One of the primary verification criteria of the autonomous vehicle is safe interaction with other... more One of the primary verification criteria of the autonomous vehicle is safe interaction with other road users. Based on studies, real-road testing is not practical for safety validation due to its time and cost consuming. Therefore, simulating miles driven is the only feasible way to overcome this limitation. The primary goal of the related research project is to develop advanced techniques in the human-robot interaction (HRI) safety validation area by usage of immersive simulation technologies. Developing methods for the creation of the simulation environment will enable us to do experiments in a digital environment rather than real. The main aim of the paper is to develop an effective method of creating a virtual environment for performing simulations on industrial robots, mobile robots, and autonomous vehicles (AGV-s) from the safety perspective for humans. A mid-size drone was used for aerial imagery as the first step in creating a virtual environment. Then all the photos were pr...
Aalto University, P.O. Box 11000, FI-00076 Aalto www.aalto.fi TALTECH, Ehitajate tee 5, 19086 Tal... more Aalto University, P.O. Box 11000, FI-00076 Aalto www.aalto.fi TALTECH, Ehitajate tee 5, 19086 Tallinn, Estonia www.ttu.ee Author Kiviluoma Panu, Kuosmanen Petri, Otto Tauno Name of the publication Proceedings of the 4th Baltic Mechatronics Symposium Publisher Aalto University School of Engineering Unit Mechanical Engineering Field of research Mechanical Engineering Language English Abstract The Baltic Mechatronics Symposium is annual symposium with the objective to provide a forum for young scientists from Baltic countries to exchange knowledge, experience, results and information in large variety of fields in mechatronics. The symposium was organized in co-operation with Taltech and Aalto University. The venue of the symposium was Nordic Hotel Forum Tallinn.The symposium was organized parallel to the 12th International DAAAM Baltic Conference and 27th International Baltic Conference BALTMATTRIB 2019. The selected papers are published in Proceedings of Estonian Academy of Sciences i...
IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering, 2021
Autonomous robotic systems are one of the pillars of Industry 4.0, together with Digital Twin (DT... more Autonomous robotic systems are one of the pillars of Industry 4.0, together with Digital Twin (DT) simulations and advanced Human Machine Interfaces (HMI). Customization requirements in modern manufacturing demand a closer collaboration between operators and automated technologies, leading to a novel Human-Robot Collaboration (HRC) and interaction paradigm aimed at the augmentation of human capabilities in the workplace. This scenario calls for a new definition of HRC standards and design for safety, programming, and an overall assessment of modern cyber-physical systems. A comprehensive design process aiming to formulate a common framework of requirements based on human, organizational and production needs is missing. A user-centered design approach described may be a solution to address the open challenges of future HRC. DT and Augmented and Virtual reality technologies (AR/VR) are implemented in elaborated model as the necessary tools to assign the operator a central position in ...
The use of industrial robots in modern manufacturing scenarios is a rising trend in the engineeri... more The use of industrial robots in modern manufacturing scenarios is a rising trend in the engineering industry. Currently, industrial robots are able to perform pre-programmed tasks very efficiently irrespective of time and complexity. However, often robots encounter unknown scenarios and to solve those, they need to cooperate with humans, leading to unnecessary downtime of the machine and the need for human intervention. The main aim of this study is to propose a method to develop adaptive industrial robots using Machine Learning (ML)/Machine Vision (MV) tools. The proposed method aims to reduce the effort of re-programming and enable self-learning in industrial robots. The elaborated online programming method can lead to fully automated industrial robotic cells in accordance with the human-robot collaboration standard and provide multiple usage options of this approach in the manufacturing industry. Machine Vision (MV) tools used for online programming allow industrial robots to mak...
Technological developments are fast and at industry level we have fourth industrial revolution go... more Technological developments are fast and at industry level we have fourth industrial revolution going on. More and more new technologies are being applied to production to make it more efficient and more competitive. In order for new technologies to be better implemented and for the end user to be able to apply them to their industry, it is necessary for educational institutions to accompany the rapid development of technology and apply these new technologies in curricula.
Timber industry is one of the most relevant economic sectors in Estonia. Automatization of forest... more Timber industry is one of the most relevant economic sectors in Estonia. Automatization of forestry management and harvesting processes optimization are realities also in this specific domain. As much as in other industrial fields adopting the Industry 4.0 paradigm and core technologies, forestry management, log harvesting and the wood processing industry make use of state-of-the-art sensors, Digital Twins and advanced interfaces for the operators. The latter include Extended Reality solutions and remote-control making use of immersive head mounted displays (HMD). This works presents an innovative system for hydraulic forestry crane teleoperation making use of HMD and wide-angle camera stream. The system hardware is installed locally while the software, integrated in Unity, supports the operator in using the crane’s native joysticks and controller for the log loading operations. Additional virtual user interface and controls are included in the immersive view and accessible through ...
Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) is an early stage of cognitive abilities loss and puts older adul... more Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) is an early stage of cognitive abilities loss and puts older adults at higher risk of developing dementia. Virtual reality (VR) could represent a tool for the early assessment of this pathological condition and for administering cognitive training. This work presents a study evaluating the acceptance and the user experience of an immersive VR application representing a supermarket. As the same application had already been assessed in Italy, we aimed to perform the same study in Estonia in order to compare the outcomes in the two populations. Fifteen older adults with MCI were enrolled in one Rehabilitation Center of Estonia and tried the supermarket once. Afterwards, they were administered questionnaires aimed at evaluating their technology acceptance, sense of presence, and cybersickness. Estonian participants reported low side effects and discrete enjoyment, and a sense of presence. Nonetheless, their intention to use the technology decreased after ...
The adoption of Digital Twin (DT) solutions for industrial purposes is increasing among small- an... more The adoption of Digital Twin (DT) solutions for industrial purposes is increasing among small- and medium-sized enterprises and is already being integrated into many large-scale companies. As there is an increasing need for faster production and shortening of the learning curve for new emerging technologies, Virtual Reality (VR) interfaces for enterprise manufacturing DTs seem to be a good solution. Furthermore, with the emergence of Industry 5.0 (I5.0) paradigm, human operators will be increasingly integrated in the systems interfaces though advanced interactions, pervasive sensors, real time tracking and data acquisition. This scenario is especially relevant in collaborative automated systems where the introduction of immersive VR interfaces based on production cell DTs might provide a solution for the integration of the human factors in the modern industrial scenarios. This study presents experimental results of the comparison between users controlling a physical industrial robot...
The advent of Industry 4.0 is changing the role of human labour towards a more supportive functio... more The advent of Industry 4.0 is changing the role of human labour towards a more supportive function in the production system, requiring new digital-, technical-, interdisciplinary-, collaborative- and communicative competencies. This challenges educational institutions to develop new teaching activities and materials to address ever emerging needs. To address this, this paper presents an Educational Framework to support educators in developing new teaching activities and study material for Industry 4.0. The model distinguishes itself from other educational design models by combining an iterative approach toward problem-solving, with the concept of authentic task design, as the core elements. Based on 14 pilot cases, it is concluded that educational framework have increased the educational activities in the areas in focus.
One of the primary verification criteria of the autonomous vehicle is safe interaction with other... more One of the primary verification criteria of the autonomous vehicle is safe interaction with other road users. Based on studies, real-road testing is not practical for safety validation due to its time and cost consuming. Therefore, simulating miles driven is the only feasible way to overcome this limitation. The primary goal of the related research project is to develop advanced techniques in the human-robot interaction (HRI) safety validation area by usage of immersive simulation technologies. Developing methods for the creation of the simulation environment will enable us to do experiments in a digital environment rather than real. The main aim of the paper is to develop an effective method of creating a virtual environment for performing simulations on industrial robots, mobile robots, and autonomous vehicles (AGV-s) from the safety perspective for humans. A mid-size drone was used for aerial imagery as the first step in creating a virtual environment. Then all the photos were pr...
Aalto University, P.O. Box 11000, FI-00076 Aalto www.aalto.fi TALTECH, Ehitajate tee 5, 19086 Tal... more Aalto University, P.O. Box 11000, FI-00076 Aalto www.aalto.fi TALTECH, Ehitajate tee 5, 19086 Tallinn, Estonia www.ttu.ee Author Kiviluoma Panu, Kuosmanen Petri, Otto Tauno Name of the publication Proceedings of the 4th Baltic Mechatronics Symposium Publisher Aalto University School of Engineering Unit Mechanical Engineering Field of research Mechanical Engineering Language English Abstract The Baltic Mechatronics Symposium is annual symposium with the objective to provide a forum for young scientists from Baltic countries to exchange knowledge, experience, results and information in large variety of fields in mechatronics. The symposium was organized in co-operation with Taltech and Aalto University. The venue of the symposium was Nordic Hotel Forum Tallinn.The symposium was organized parallel to the 12th International DAAAM Baltic Conference and 27th International Baltic Conference BALTMATTRIB 2019. The selected papers are published in Proceedings of Estonian Academy of Sciences i...
IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering, 2021
Autonomous robotic systems are one of the pillars of Industry 4.0, together with Digital Twin (DT... more Autonomous robotic systems are one of the pillars of Industry 4.0, together with Digital Twin (DT) simulations and advanced Human Machine Interfaces (HMI). Customization requirements in modern manufacturing demand a closer collaboration between operators and automated technologies, leading to a novel Human-Robot Collaboration (HRC) and interaction paradigm aimed at the augmentation of human capabilities in the workplace. This scenario calls for a new definition of HRC standards and design for safety, programming, and an overall assessment of modern cyber-physical systems. A comprehensive design process aiming to formulate a common framework of requirements based on human, organizational and production needs is missing. A user-centered design approach described may be a solution to address the open challenges of future HRC. DT and Augmented and Virtual reality technologies (AR/VR) are implemented in elaborated model as the necessary tools to assign the operator a central position in ...
The use of industrial robots in modern manufacturing scenarios is a rising trend in the engineeri... more The use of industrial robots in modern manufacturing scenarios is a rising trend in the engineering industry. Currently, industrial robots are able to perform pre-programmed tasks very efficiently irrespective of time and complexity. However, often robots encounter unknown scenarios and to solve those, they need to cooperate with humans, leading to unnecessary downtime of the machine and the need for human intervention. The main aim of this study is to propose a method to develop adaptive industrial robots using Machine Learning (ML)/Machine Vision (MV) tools. The proposed method aims to reduce the effort of re-programming and enable self-learning in industrial robots. The elaborated online programming method can lead to fully automated industrial robotic cells in accordance with the human-robot collaboration standard and provide multiple usage options of this approach in the manufacturing industry. Machine Vision (MV) tools used for online programming allow industrial robots to mak...
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