Dear Colleagues,

Advanced robotics and artificial intelligence can influence the safety and health of industrial processes. Artificial-intelligence-based systems and advanced robotics are transforming the way work is designed and performed. These systems, which can be either embedded (e.g., robotics) or non-embedded (e.g., smart apps), can perform actions with some degree of autonomy  to perform physical or cognitive tasks and achieve specific goals. This has significant positive implications for business productivity as well as OSH occupational health and safety. For example, workers can be removed from hazardous environments and tasks and workloads can be optimized. These systems can perform repetitive high-risk or non-creative tasks associated with more traditional and emerging OSH risks, leaving workers with low-risk, productive or creative tasks. However, there are several OSH challenges related to the use of these AI-based systems in the workplace, which mainly arise from the interaction between these systems and the workers, e.g., unexpected collisions, over-reliance and other psychosocial and organizational harms. These challenges must be addressed. Research in this area identifies and debates the opportunities, challenges and risks associated with the use of advanced robotics and artificial-intelligence-based systems to automate physical and cognitive tasks, highlighting various additional issues, including human and human–machine interaction.

Prof. Dr. Lucian-Ionel Cioca
Guest Editor

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• artificial intelligence
• safety and health at work
• innovative processes
• industrial processes
• safety processes
• industrial safety
• process management
• new technologies
• new safe work methods
• process ergonomics