3:00 PM JST, May 26, 2024
Konica Minolta, Inc. is launching a new service this fall that interviews skilled technicians at manufacturing companies and uses generative AI to create manuals based on their expertise. The service will be marketed to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that do not have the resources and time to create manuals and train employees to pass on technical knowledge.
The AI will analyze audio data from interviews with skilled technicians about their work processes and techniques and compile the information into written manuals. Even techniques expressed through intuitive words like “whoosh” and “whoops” will be verbalized as much as possible.
In a pilot test conducted at a metal parts manufacturer in Shizuoka Prefecture, a draft manual was created based on an approximately 30-minute interview. After technician revisions, the manual was completed in approximately two hours.
There are concerns that if the transfer of tacit knowledge based on experience and intuition does not proceed smoothly, it could lead to a decline in quality and work efficiency. While some large companies are digitizing manuals using AI, smaller companies face challenges keeping up with this trend.
Konica Minolta plans to improve the accuracy of manual creation and in the future wants to develop a system in which AI acts as an interviewer.
