Manufacturing DX evolves through AI smart glasses and integrated engineering

Developments in manufacturing digital transformation (DX) are shifting toward integrated engineering and advanced wearable technology. At the Nepcon Japan Autumn exhibition, software developer casaliz demonstrated its ‘HintBot’ AI field education platform, which utilizes smart glasses to provide visual instructions to workers on the factory floor.

In a separate seminar, Hiroaki Matsukawa, Professor Emeritus at Keio University and President of SMCT, discussed the evolution of smart factories. Matsukawa argued that mere automation and information technology are insufficient for true DX. He proposed that next-generation smart factories must achieve ‘overall optimization’ by connecting product design, production systems, and operations.

Matsukawa outlined a five-generation model of factory evolution, moving from mechanization and automation to the current stage of AI and IoT platform integration. He advocated for an ‘autonomous decentralized integrated type’ system, where individual modules operate autonomously while being coordinated by an integrated control base. This approach aims to balance local and global optimization, moving away from the current reliance on human adjustment to manage complex production systems.