Advanced Information Technology Systems

Project Director:
Doug Britton
doug.britton@gtri.gatech.edu

The advanced information technology systems research project focused almost exclusively on developing an augmented reality (AR) system to enhance communication between computer databases and poultry processing line workers. The research team leveraged much of the work from previous years to build and test a prototype AR system centered on the eviscerating line trim task. In order to complete the development and test a prototype system in the laboratory, a mock task was designed to replicate the level of effort associated with an actual trim task. Two different communication methods, a data projection system and a head-mounted display, were integrated into an overall AR system on a laboratory shackle line. The AR system was designed to display associated “mock trim” information above or on the bird. The worker would view this information and know what tasks to perform. Three different tests were conducted to evaluate the efficacy of the AR system for this particular trim application.

The first test consisted of the current procedure used in plants, where the trimmer was given verbal commands to perform various mock trim tasks. In the second case, an overhead projection system displayed the required trim information above the bird, which the trim person was then required to observe and act upon. In the third test, the trim person wore a head-mounted display that overlaid the proper trim task information on the bird. In this last case, as the trimmer moved his head, the head-mounted display would automatically update the information for the particular bird that the trim person was observing. Analysis of the results of tests with human participants showed that the overhead projection system required the least mental demand, which was attributed to the ability of the participant to look ahead and prepare for future trim tasks. A paper detailing the results has been submitted to the Association for Computing Machinery 2007 Computer Human Interaction Conference. The research team anticipates that this technology will be very beneficial not only for the trim task, but in other areas of the plant where real-time data must be communicated by a computer to a person on the processing line. The team plans to adapt the AR research to communicate product and cooking temperatures with oven technicians at the exit of high-volume ovens. The ability to dynamically and adaptively identify potentially cold or overcooked product on a cook line has strong potential appeal.