The world has already witnessed an industrial revolution in the form of Industry 4.0. As defined by the World Economic Forum, Industry 4.0 essentially is an integration of digital technologies, including Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the Internet of Things (IoT).

In line with that, over the previous industrial revolutions, there has been a major paradigm shift from manual work to automated processes. One constant has been the decreasing reliance on human resources and the growing importance of industrial machines and technology. However, the advent of Industry 5.0 is now transforming even this given constant. The emphasis is now on increasing collaboration between humans and technology.

As explained by Dan Gamota of Jabil, “The Fifth Industrial Revolution is evolving from a concentration on the digital experience to one where humans are back in charge.” According to this EU prediction, Industry 5.0 will prioritize the worker’s well-being and adopt a societal approach to the manufacturing domain.

So, what is Industry 5.0? Let’s discuss.

What is Industry 5.0? 

Industry 5.0, referred to as the fifth industrial revolution, is the new phase of industrialization where humans are expected to work along with AI-powered tools and technologies. Essentially, Industry 5.0 provides a “human-centric” approach to the manufacturing process. With this revolution, manufacturers can now seamlessly leverage Industry 4.0 technologies, including:

• Artificial Intelligence
• Automation
• Big Data Analytics
• Internet of Things
• Machine Learning
• Robotics

European Union defines Industry 5.0 as an “industry vision that aims beyond efficiency and productivity as the sole goals – and reinforces the role and the contribution of industry to society.” Effectively, it emphasizes the importance of the worker’s well-being and places them at the center of the production process. This has created a major shift from economic value towards societal well-being.

So, how does Industry 5.0 benefit the manufacturing industry? Let’s discuss this in the following section.

Benefits of Industry 5.0 

With all its latest technology and process, Industry 4.0 fell short because of its focus on production instead of sustainability. This is where Industry 5.0 scores over Industry 4.0. Here are some of the benefits of Industry 5.0:

1. Human-Centric Approach

A human-centric approach prioritizes human needs over production output. Industry 5.0 puts the focus on how “technology can adapt to the workers” instead of the other way around. For instance, how technology can help workers perform their tasks with efficiency. This increases the worker’s engagement and satisfaction levels.

2. The Improved Customer Experience (CX)

Manufacturers realize it’s not enough to sell a high-quality product to customers. Customers expect a better and consistent CX when interacting with any manufacturing brand. Industry 5.0 improves the collaboration between humans and machines. Through improved CX and customer relationships, manufacturers can retain more customers and increase their revenue.

3. Environmental Sustainability

For sustainable manufacturing, companies are adopting processes based on the three R’s, namely, reusability, repurposing, and recycling. Industry 5.0 leverages the power of AI technology to optimize resource consumption, increase personalization, and reduce industrial waste.

4. Hyper-Personalization

As more customers demand personalized and customized products, manufacturing companies are innovating products through hyper-personalization. Enabled by Industry 5.0, manufacturers can mix the human touch with a variety of technologies to satisfy their customers’ needs.

Next, let’s discuss how computer vision technology can play an enabling role in the coming of Industry 5.0.

How Computer Vision Technology Can Enable Industry 5.0

According to Ericsson’s research, employees in the manufacturing sector think that over 70% of their assigned tasks are repetitive or dangerous. 80% of manufacturing workers have reported injuries while performing their job. With Industry 5.0, automated machines can handle repetitive and dangerous tasks.

For instance, production line workers may require carrying heavy parts to assemble a product. This can cause serious injuries to their hands or backs. An industrial robot built for carrying heavy parts can assist them in completing this task. With AI-powered computer vision (CV), manufacturers can identify heavy loads that cannot be lifted by human workers.

Additionally, enabled by Industry 5.0, vision intelligence is making computers and manufacturing equipment visually enabled. This means that along with CV technology, machines can now “see” and process visual information just like humans. Among the applications, vision intelligence (along with smart cameras) can capture images and perform cognitive functions. For example, identify damaged goods from the production output and report the same to the nearest supervisor.

Similarly, camera-enabled CV systems can monitor the movement of products along conveyor belts. They can help human workers spot poor-quality products and separate them from the batch.

Computer vision technology can also play a transformational role in designing smart factories for Industry 5.0. Smart factory designs can support a robotic workforce with minimum human intervention. This presents opportunities for environmental sustainability with less energy consumption.

Conclusion

The advent of Industry 5.0 has brought the focus back to the human element in modern manufacturing. Driven by Industry 4.0 technologies, Industry 5.0 creates the perfect collaboration between humans and machines. With its visual and cognitive capabilities, AI-powered computer vision can create an “intelligent” collaboration between human workers and machines.

In the manufacturing domain, KamerAI has enabled innovation and transformation with its AI-powered computer vision technology. With KamerAI solutions, manufacturing companies have the right CV technology to improve their productivity, inspect defective products, and improve worker safety.

Wondering how computer vision will transform the future of manufacturing? Get in touch with us to learn more.