A systematic approach for allocating functions to humans and machines has been an elusive goal of human factors specialists for more than 30 years. The author has fortunately been able to obtain contract support for reviewing the earlier techniques and methods in the literature and deriving “lessons learned” to guide the development of the approach reported here. The approach is believed to be systematic and embedded in the overall system design process. This paper describes the systems approach to design and how the allocation of functions is a part of it, as a five-step procedure with four principal rules for arriving at a hypothetical allocation.

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The application of human factors to the design of products and systems has long been advocated as a way to improve performance. Until now, Japanese manufacturers have made great efforts to improve their products in terms of their function, reliability, and cost. Developmental research and product development have been fundamentally geared towards these three aspects. Japanese companies have recently shifted to a strategy of added value through human technology, which incorporates such areas as comfort, enjoyment, and usability. Since 1987, Nomura Research Institute (NRI) in Yokohama, Japan, has undertaken a multi-client Human Technology Project with many Japanese clients such as automobile companies, electronic companies, and construction companies. The project is now in its third year and continuing. This paper reports on the nature of that study and why “human technology” is such a hot issue for Japanese corporate strategies concerning product development and research and development.

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