Epidemiologic Notes and Reports: Occupational Fatality Associated with a Robot – Michigan

Details

• Journal Article:
  Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report
• Corporate Authors:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Description:
  Occupational hazards, including one fatality, associated with the use of industrial robots are discussed. A male worker in Michigan was operating an automated die cast system that included an industrial robot. He was found inside the work envelope pinned by the robot. The robot had stalled, applying sustained pressure to the chest of the operator. The cause of death was listed as necrosis of the brain due to cardiopulmonary arrest. Factors that may have contributed to the fatal accident include the behavior of the operator, the type of safety rail that was used to separate workers from the robot, and the presence of a fixed safety pole in the robotic work area that enabled a potentially fatal pinch point between the back movement of the robot and the pole. The accelerated use of robotics has potential hazards. The importance of recognizing and planning for all potential hazards, the need for care in designing and installation of robotic equipment, and the training and supervision of workers associated with robots are discussed. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Mortality Occupational Exposure Occupational Health Safety Workplace
• Keywords:
  NIOSH-Author; Exposure-limits; Workplace-studies; Mortality-data; Exposure-levels; Occupational-hazards; Workers; Hazards; Occupations; Mortality-surveys; Physiological-measurements
• Source:
  MMWR 1985 Mar; 34(11):145-146
• Series:
  Weekly Report: Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR)
• ISSN:
  0149-2195
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Michigan ; OSHA Region 5
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  2 pdf pages
• Volume:
  34
• Issue:
  11
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:00152723
• Citation:
  MMWR 1985 Mar; 34(11):145-146
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1985
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Collection(s):
  Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:a5b8e257982246895d01d5cdc677da08307caa78928fb8ee1860cc382e63053c26f4366e5f073495805f980345d2eb59d623f5691896fa456ca5fcbb9d0b945b
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/183080/cdc_183080_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 251.59 KB ]