Framework for Worker Assistance System to Enable Disassembly Processes Towards Circular Economy

Climate change, one of the most significant threats to humanity, underscores the urgent need to advance the circular economy, particularly in promoting sustainability. Implementing R-strategies such as refurbishment and remanufacturing within the home appliances industry is central to establishing sustainable and environmentally friendly business models. Key processes, such as workpiece disassembly, reassembly, and component status evaluation, are inherently more complex and variable than conventional production workflows. This requires workers with extensive experience handling comparable products and a deep understanding of critical decision-making processes. Due to the skilled worker shortage and the impact of demographic shifts, developing precise and comprehensive work instructions is increasingly vital for maintaining process quality. A worker assistance system is essential to meet this need, providing robust decision support to ensure accurate and sufficient decision-making. This paper proposes a framework for a worker assistance system tailored to the application of R-strategies in washing machine production. Data from an industrial scenario validates the framework and identifies critical information that should be incorporated into the system, enhancing the applicability and feasibility of the framework in real-world contexts. Within the framework, potential data sources and information flows are proposed, and illustrative processes are employed to demonstrate the derivation of work instructions utilizing the framework.