Automotive News Canada - October 2016 - V2 - 4

* OCTOBER 2016

Movie technology
moves to the vehicle
production line

Knowing what the skeleton
is doing under the skin
could increase worker safety
as well as efficiency
By GREG LAYSON
WINDSOR CORRESPONDENT

FORD MOTOR CO. AND RESEARCHers from the University of Windsor are
exploring how 3D motion capture technology could increase worker safety and
efficiency on the assembly line.
Using the same technology Hollywood
uses to create films like Planet of the
Apes and Avatar, researchers create
computer-generated workstations and
digital employees to analyze the ergonomics of any particular job on the line.
With more than 400 assembly line stations in the average auto factory, it can
be costly and time consuming to create a
physical simulated work station for each
one. That's why the 3D technology and
computer animation is being used.
Professor Joe Cort is one of the
researchers working on the project. He
can mock up basic physical workstations in his lab using a variety of items,
such as plastic quarter panels, desks and
doweling and rubber hoses and more. He
uses those to test the $60,000 motion-capture technology and software.
Once initial analysis of the technology itself is complete in his lab, to ensure

Joe Cort (right), Professor of Human Kinetics at the University of Windsor, is working on a process of 3D motion capture that will show how repetitive-strain injuries happen on the factory floor, and how to better improve working conditions. Demonstrating the suit is Ji Xiaoxu, a Mitacs Accelerate intern and postdoctoral fellow.
all the sensors and software work well
together, employees at Ford's Windsor
engine plants and the company's
Oakville assembly plant will be outfitted
with a motion capture suit.
As the employees work, the high-tech
suit, which includes special gloves and 36
sensors, will record their movements on
the factory floor. All that information will
be uploaded to a computer that will generate what Cort called "a digital mannequin" that will work on a digital assembly.

NOT SO DIFFERENT TO HOLLYWOOD
"It's no different than what
Hollywood or EA Sports is doing," Cort
said of the video game and film industry.
"They're after what the skeleton is doing
under the actors' or athletes' skin."
He called assembly workers "industrial athletes" who hone their own skills
and become as efficient as they can on
their own over time.
This project will give Ford a
near-complete picture of the tasks at
each of its hundreds of assembly line
work stations, enabling more rapid and
accurate ergonomic analysis of the job.
The company's industrial engineers
can then use the information to redesign
stations when necessary and optimize
for efficiencies.

"If we can capture their motions in
terms of how the job is currently being
done and understand the operator's
motions, we can use that and develop
predicted algorithms," Cort said.
For example, the technology will be
used to spot differences in how tall and
short workers do the same job. It can
also be used to help reduce bending or
straining during jobs that require lifting,
or pushing.
One of the goals is to get the digital
human to "mimic the work that will be
done five years from now and mitigate
any potential injury," Cort said.
"A lot of injuries we see in manufacturing are soft tissue injuries. These
aren't slip and trip and fall," he said.
"These are hard to diagnose. We're
talking about repetitive strains. They
may not always show up in statistics."
The WSIB reported in June that 46
per cent of all injury cases it dealt with
in 2015 were strains and sprains. The
body part with the highest number of
injuries was the lower back, accounting
for 16 per cent.
Cort's results can also be shared with
physicians to help guide more effective
return-to-work plans for workers who
were injured on the job.
And, more efficient and ergonomic
workstations will lead to better built cars,

Cort said. Reaching too far or not having
enough strength to do a particular task
to its fullest has the potential to affect the
quality of the end product, he said.
He also said the technology can be
used by other parts of the auto industry,
such as part suppliers.
Cort hopes to be on the factory floor
by January 2017, sharing one suit at as
many as 50 workstations.
"Ford recognizes that to stay ahead,
we have to tap into advanced research.
This collaboration provides access to
technical expertise that we've not been
able to get elsewhere," Ford ergonomist
Allison Stephens said in a statement.
The $170,000 project is being funded
by Ford and the Canadian government,
through the Mitacs Accelerate Project,
a national, not-for-profit organization
that has designed and delivered research
and training programs in Canada for 15
years. It works with universities, companies and federal and provincial governments to partner academics with industry.
"The Mitacs Accelerate Program has
also given us the opportunity to build
relationships with some of the best talent in the field," Stephens said. "In fact,
we hired one of Professor Cort's students right after an internship with us
last year." - ANC

Pfaff buys into Harley-Davidson
By MARK RICHARDSON
TORONTO CORRESPONDENT

PFAFF AUTOMOTIVE
Partners is adding two-wheelers to its growing portfolio of
four-wheelers. It announced the
acquisition of Davies HarleyDavidson in late September.
"There is no stronger, or
more culturally significant,
motorcycle brand on the market," said CEO Christopher
Pfaff, "and we can't wait to
introduce Harley-Davidson to
our passionate owners of premium automobiles. We think

they'll love Harley-Davidson as
much as we do."
Davies was established in
1992 by Bob and Robyn Davies,
who are retiring; they've served
riders from its 17,500-squarefoot (1,600-square-metre)
Richmond Hill location since
1998.
Pfaff is involved in motorsport and its 15 businesses
include auto dealerships that
sell Volkswagen, Toyota, Audi,
BMW, Porsche, McLaren,
Pagani and Singer Vehicle
Design.
Harley-Davidson says it is
looking to expand its number of

Canadian dealerships in coming years, not just geographically but also demographically, to
better serve riders of all backgrounds.
"Right now, to serve the
Greater Toronto Area, we
have two dealerships: one
in Richmond Hill and one in
Mississauga," says Anoop
Prakash, managing director of
Harley-Davidson Canada.
"By the end of next year,
or the beginning of 2018, we
should have four. And even
another 18 months hence, we
should have maybe six."
- ANC

Harley-Davidson says it is looking to expand its number of
Canadian dealerships in coming years.

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Automotive News Canada - October 2016 - V2