Digital manual with wearable retinal imaging display for the next innovation. In manufacturing

This study discusses how digital manuals with retinal imaging display (RID) can be applied to conventional work scenarios, particularly focusing on their impact on workers’ psychology. An RID is a type of wearable display, like glasses, that enables users to view an overlay of a digital image and the real world. We conducted an experiment in which the subjects assembled an object consisting of 10 parts, by referring to a manual presented using RID. We prepared three types of manual content: a picture manual in monochrome, a picture manual in full color, and a movie manual. The subjects were tested under three conditions in which each type of content was presented using RID. For comparison, the subjects were also tested under two additional conditions: the same picture manual in monochrome presented on a 17-inch normal display; and the same picture manual in monochrome presented on paper. Based on the experimental results, we make the following suggestions. When a paper manual is replaced by a digital manual, the workers’ task performance improves. However, for highly skilled workers, differences in display type or content design do not always improve their performance further. On the other hand, differences in display type and content design can have a characteristic influence on the workers’ psychology. In particular, 1) manuals with full-color pictures can work well in various situations; 2) manuals with monochrome pictures give workers a comfortable sense of tension and make them conscious of a professional atmosphere; and 3) movie manuals can add positive factors such as pleasure, high motivation, and strong emotional impressions.