During the course of her PhD, Harveen aims to explore the capabilities and potential improvements in Human-Robot Collaboration (HRC). There is a prevalence of machine-centred and human-centred research, with studies demonstrating how the design of human-robot cells can influence various aspects of human behaviour and performance. Her motivation centres on further investigating how HRC can be optimized for productivity, while concurrently gaining a better understanding of the needs of human users in these human-robot co-working environments. While HRC environments can lead to significant production efficiencies such as increased task performance and reduced task completion times, it is crucial to comprehensively understand both the short-term (e.g. user safety and susceptibility to high levels of workload) and long-term impacts (e.g. job satisfaction and potential long-term health issues) on the human operator.
Harveen's interest in this topic area was sparked during her master's dissertation in Advanced Manufacturing Engineering and Management MSc here at Loughborough University. Her thesis focused on 'The Evaluation of Collaborative Human-Robot Tasks,' where she analysed operator workload and task performance within a task assembly modelled in a production cell. The study encompassed four configurations of Human-Robot Collaboration (HRC), with variations in robot automation levels and robot motion speed. The results of this research were published in the journal paper titled 'An Adaptive Human Sensor Framework for Human-Robot Collaboration' in the International Journal of Advanced Manufacturing Technology in 2021.
She is a multidisciplinary engineer with a BEng in Materials Engineering from Loughborough University and has an interest in material science. Currently, Harveen works as a corrosion and inspection engineer at Cadent Gas, specialising in cathodic protection. In this role, she develops engineering policies, ensures compliance with HSE regulations, and provides support to operational staff responsible for maintaining the safe gas supply to over 11 million homes in the UK.
Wecome to the team Harveen. We look forward to working with you.