Industry 5.0 represents the next frontier in advancing human-machine interfaces through human-centric approaches. This paper outlines industrial regulations emphasizing operators’ cognitive and physiological capabilities in HMI design for control systems. Through process control cases, we demonstrate how eye-tracking captures operators’ engagement with interfaces and perception of design elements. Fixation, scan path, and saccadic measures effectively evaluate attention allocation and search efficiency. Pupil size, blink rate, and saccade amplitude support in assessing mental workload under changing HMI configurations. Findings remain preliminary; involving experienced operators and diverse scenarios could improve generalizability and promote practitioner engagement to develop human-centered HMIs for industrial applications.

Fatigue poses a major safety risk in the transport sector, especially in Latin America where long working hours and inadequate recovery are common. This case study describes the development, implementation, and evaluation of a Fatigue Risk Management Program (FMP) in a Chilean transportation company. The intervention combined organizational and individual-level strategies—such as shift redesign, driver rest areas, fatigue-reporting protocols, and leadership training—within a participatory framework. Quantitative and qualitative assessments showed improvements in alertness, sleep quality, and recovery, alongside enhanced driver confidence in fatigue reporting. The findings demonstrate the feasibility and value of a systems-based and culturally sensitive approach to fatigue management in Latin American contexts.

While “expertise” is frequently used as a variable in human factors research, the criteria for defining this construct often lack clarity and consistency. This article briefly reviews common definitions of expertise and how it has been operationalized in research, highlighting the need for more nuanced categorization of expertise. We posit that expertise is multifaceted and propose a dichotomy that distinguishes “system expertise” from “task expertise,” with recency and frequency of task performance playing crucial roles alongside traditional metrics.

Technological advancements have increased the risk of work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs). This study assessed a passive shoulder exoskeleton during screw driving and electrical cable locking tasks in 14 males. Exoskeleton use significantly reduced anterior deltoid, middle deltoid, and pectoralis major muscle activity (%MVC, p < .001), and lowered perceived exertion in the hand/wrist, upper arm, and shoulder (p ≤ .003). Productivity increased (p < .001) and task time decreased (p = .021) with the exoskeleton. These findings demonstrate that passive shoulder exoskeletons effectively reduce physical strain and improve efficiency, offering a practical solution for mitigating WMSDs in labor-intensive industries.

This study examined how Chile’s Manual Material Handling guide is utilized by professionals with varying levels of training and expertise. A nationwide survey of 203 participants who applied the guide across 5900+ job positions revealed that while trained users reported better understanding, significant barriers persist—particularly confusing language, unclear flowcharts, and inconsistent regulatory implementation. Interestingly, the most experienced users were also the most critical. Findings indicate that improving the guide’s clarity, structure, and accessibility would enhance adoption. Recommendations include simplifying language, clarifying processes, standardizing reporting formats, and expanding training access to improve workplace risk assessments and occupational safety nationwide.

Tractor operation remains a major source of injuries in agriculture. This study used the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) to identify and rank eight critical factors and 24 sub-factors influencing tractor-driver safety. A structured questionnaire, finalized with input from 5 experts, was administered to 184 participants through personal interviews (95% confidence level). The data showed good reliability (Cronbach’s alpha = 0.72). Maintenance was identified as the most influential factor, followed by vibration and noise measurement. The findings provide actionable insights for improving tractor-driver safety and occupational health standards in agricultural operations.

This article explores how effectively practitioners use Chile’s official tool to assess upper limbs injuries at work. We compared trained experts and non-experts using real-world exercises. Both groups had trouble identifying work tasks and rated risks differently. Experts achieved moderately higher overall performance scores (4.6 ± 0.7 vs. 4.1 ± 0.5, p < .05), but showed no significant difference in critical decision-making agreement with expert consensus (Mann–Whitney test, p > .05). These results suggest the problem may lie in the tool itself, not just in how people are trained. We recommend enhanced tool design, clearer instructions, and more practical examples to help users apply the tool consistently. Improving the tool’s structural design could make risk assessments more accurate and reliable in real workplaces.

The interaction between humans and vehicles is crucial in the design of passenger car architecture. Forward visibility for the driver is a key factor that significantly impacts overall situational awareness, enabling drivers to comprehend and anticipate the actions of other road users and adjust their behavior accordingly. This paper explores the influence of architectural parameters on drivers’ forward visibility in passenger cars through a combination of empirical testing and simulation models. We gathered 130 primary data points via a static visibility assessment involving 65 volunteers across four different vehicles, capturing volunteer metadata, vehicle architectural parameters, and forward visibility of the driver over the bonnet. Volunteers’ anthropometric data were scanned within the vehicle and accurately mapped to a virtual vehicle environment. We introduce a metric, FVR (Forward Visibility Range), to quantify forward visibility and developed theoretical formulations by integrating architectural variables that affect visibility performance. A benchmarking study of 156 passenger cars was conducted, and their FVR was evaluated across selected anthropometric profiles. We identified specific combinations of architectural variables that enhance forward visibility performance. Theoretical formulations were validated against test data, confirming their stability and robustness. The findings presented in this paper are instrumental in establishing vehicle targets and specifications for forward visibility during the early stages of architectural design.