FW-HTF-P: Workers and Technology Together (WATT)

Proposed Project The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report, ?Climate Change and Land?, estimated that food waste and its loss as energy ?caused between 8 and 10% of the emissions of the gases responsible for global warming in the period 2010-2016?. Of the total methane emissions released from landfills in a given year, food waste accounts for 20%. The efficient capture and safe processing of food waste into energy will have an appreciable reduction on annual greenhouse gas emissions. The current process of sorting and processing organic waste is inefficient, hazardous, and undertaken primarily by low-wage temporary workers who lack job security, living wages and benefits. Through its research, the project team will determine if applying autonomy technologies to some organic waste processing functions will increase the capture of organic waste, reduce hazardous job functions for line workers and enforcement agents, increase the efficiency and profitability of organic waste processing, and up/reskill low-skill, temporary workers to assume full-time, semi-skilled positions working alongside automation assistants. Furthermore, the research and testing of autonomy technologies in diverse contexts is critical to understanding how human workers can develop their own technical skills in order to work collaboratively with autonomy. The project team is confident that the results of this research and one-year planning grant will provide insight into how to mature autonomy technologies for application in other areas of national interest, and/or how existing/emerging autonomy technologies (e.g., JPL openCAESAR) can be used in diverse contexts (on earth in terrestrial settings and on missions, such as Artemis). Expected Outcomes / Deliverables 1. Identified ?pain points? in existing processes/procedures from multiple perspectives: line workers, supervisors/managers, enforcement agents, industry, legal. 2. Concept Operation a. Technological needs/adjustments/designs (e.g., digital twin, artificial intelligence, etc.) of system b. Preparation/Training program for on-the-ground workers (both line workers and enforcement agents) to effectively leverage automation technology through upskilling/reskilling with technological skills c. Differentiation model/tool to determine, based on local operational context, who will be responsible for what, i.e., worker responsibilities/tasks vs. automated responsibilities/tasks 3. System architecture: design concept, requirements, etc. 4. Autonomy technology applications beyond this project context 5. Research & Development Plan for next project phase (supported by future funding) Activities During the one-year planning period, a multidisciplinary project team, including two CSUN graduate students, will conduct research through: - On-site interviews and focus groups with line workers and supervisors/managers at regional organic waste processing facilities - Interviews and focus groups with enforcement agents working in the Los Angeles basin - On-site interviews with owners/operators of processing facilities - On-site technical feasibility tests of technologies (e.g., digital twin) that can help reveal automation solutions and increase worker safety - A-Team Study: JPL Innovation Foundry?s Architecture-Team (A-Team), a proven method for technical teams to quickly iterate on initial concepts and move them into advanced study mission concepts (concept operation for system and training program, system architecture, and future/follow on R&D). Dr. Steve Matousek, A-Team Study lead, will lead the one-day A-Team Study session for this project.