Remote control desk in Industry 4.0 for train driver: an ergonomics perspective

Remote control of trains will be an intermediary step before reaching full automation. In trains, use cases for remote control have been studied only for the past few years. This research presents a project about remote control for the next generation of trains in France and how we carry out the design of a new teleoperation desk for future remote train drivers. We present an Ergonomic Work Analysis used to precisely understand driver's activity. This analysis allowed us to identify the needs of future drivers and to propose ways to overcome one of the main problems that drivers will face when remotely driving a train: loss and degradation of sense. We explain how innovative technologies developed within the Industry 4.0 can offer solutions to problems faced with remote-control.