Poka Yoke is A Japanese Term Meaning.docx 611t

Poka Yoke is a Japanese term meaning “mistake-proofing” coined by Shigeo Shingo who was working for Toyota in the 1960’s. Originally the term used was baka-yoke, which meant “idiot-proofing,” but the term was changed due to negative connotations. Poka yoke works by preventing defects, detecting defects or alerting a worker when a mistake has been made. Shigeo Shingo was an industrial engineer who recognized production defects being at Toyota caused largely by human error. He corrected this by identifying common mistakes and applying a poka yoke system that could reduce or eliminate the number of defects produced. This concept, though originally developed in the automotive production industry, can and has been used throughout service and production industries. Its application in the medical field has been an important intervention to avoid human error that compromises patient and worker safety. In Automobile

Many people lose their lives or get maimed through vehicular accidents each year. Safety of s of automobiles is of paramount importance and many measures have been taken to make them safe.  Radar and video cameras in new vehicle models are able to tell the distance and speed of other road s. This helps them prevent collisions in case of sudden stops. The device here is more of a warning and preventive measure but it does not strictly fit into the concept of behaviour modification. The driver may choose to ignore the warning which will lead to an accident. The device does not stop the accident from happening in the first place. 

Airbags deflate quickly after an accident to prevent injury to the occupants of the vehicle

In everyday Products Products that we use every day have features that make them safe and convenient. The following are a few examples of how mistake-proofing is used for everyday household products:  Electric plugs have an earth pin that is longer than the other pins and is the first to make with the socket. The protective shield of the neutral and earth sockets are then opened safely. Electric sockets are shaped in a manner that only one way of plugging-in is possible. This prevents the possibility of a short-circuit occurring 

Elevator doors have a sensor that causes them to open when there is an obstruction-this prevents injury to someone trying to enter as the doors are closing.

In Manufacturing The internal processes in lean manufacturing systems are supposed to produce quality products the first time. Error-proofing in this case is a quality assurance technique that ensures quality is in-built and results in better products.  Interlock switches which detect the position of a machine guard and switch off the machine when the guard is lifted. Machine will never operate when the guard has been lifted and this prevents accidents to the operator.

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Safety mats near machine areas that pose a danger automatically trigger stoppage when someone steps on them. This prevents injury to personnel (such are technicians) who are trying to access dangerous sections of a machine

Fool-proofing in Nuclear Power Plants 

Nuclear accidents can have devastating effects as was seen in the Chernobyl

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disaster. Nuclear power plants use the defense-in-depth concept of barriers to the prevent fission material from being released from the reactor core to the environment. The fuel rods have cladding that prevent the release of fission material in the event of a melt-down. The reactor is designed to assist in the cooling of the rods in case there is a decrease in the cooling water in the core. This is very important as the heat released during the decay of radioactive material can start a chain reaction that is unstoppable.

Service Industry Error-prevention The service industry is very important in that there is direct and constant interaction with the customer  and any failure on the part of providers of services can result in losing good business. This failure to serve a customer as per their expectation can be considered an error and many service  providers have put in place a number of error­proofing processes to prevent this from happening. The following are just a few examples of how service providers mitigate against the chances of causing mistakes in their businesses:

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Electronic tags in airline luggage handling systems ensure that enger luggage is not lost after check-in. Airline staff are able to locate misplaced luggage anywhere in the world as the tag contains all the necessary enger and flight information that is used in tracking it. 

Queue management systems in banks and other public venues are designed in such a way that customers are served according to the order in which they came in promptly thus preventing customer dissatisfaction.