Skip to Main Content
 

Global Search Box

 
 
 
 

Files

File List


Disseration_FERN.pdf (11.84 MB)

ETD Abstract Container

Abstract Header

A Cognitive Systems Engineering Approach to Developing Human Machine Interface Requirements for New Technologies

Fern, Lisa C.
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1461248106

Abstract Details

2016, Doctor of Philosophy, Ohio State University, Industrial and Systems Engineering.
This dissertation examines the challenges inherent in designing and regulating to support human-automation interaction for new technologies that will be deployed into complex systems. A key question for new technologies with increasingly capable automation, is how work will be accomplished by human and machine agents. This question has traditionally been framed as how functions should be allocated between humans and machines. Such framing misses the coordination and synchronization that is needed for the different human and machine roles in the system to accomplish their goals. Coordination and synchronization demands are driven by the underlying human-automation architecture of the new technology, which are typically not specified explicitly by designers. The human machine interface (HMI), which is intended to facilitate human-machine interaction and cooperation, typically is defined explicitly and therefore serves as a proxy for human-automation cooperation requirements with respect to technical standards for technologies. Unfortunately, mismatches between the HMI and the coordination and synchronization demands of the underlying human-automation architecture can lead to system breakdowns. A methodology is needed that both designers and regulators can utilize to evaluate the predicted performance of a new technology given potential human-automation architectures. Three experiments were conducted to inform the minimum HMI requirements for a detect and avoid (DAA) system for unmanned aircraft systems (UAS). The results of the experiments provided empirical input to specific minimum operational performance standards that UAS manufacturers will have to meet in order to operate UAS in the National Airspace System (NAS). These studies represent a success story for how to objectively and systematically evaluate prototype technologies as part of the process for developing regulatory requirements. They also provide an opportunity to reflect on the lessons learned in order to improve the the methodology for defining technology requirements for regulators in the future. The biggest shortcoming of the presented research program was the absence of the explicit definition, generation and analysis of potential human-automation architectures. Failure to execute this step in the research process resulted in less efficient evaluation of the candidate prototypes technologies in addition to a lack of exploration of different approaches to human-automation cooperation. Defining potential human-automation architectures a priori also allows regulators to develop scenarios that will stress the performance boundaries of the technology during the evaluation phase. The importance of adding this step of generating and evaluating candidate human-automation architectures prior to formal empirical evaluation is discussed. This document concludes with a look at both the importance of, and the challenges facing, the inclusion of examining human-automation coordination issues as part of the safety assurance activities of new technologies.
David Woods (Advisor)
Philip Smith (Committee Member)
Jozef Raadschelders (Committee Member)
264 p.
Aerospace Engineering; Engineering; Experiments; Industrial Engineering; Psychology; Systems Design; Technology
human machine interface; human-automation interaction; human-machine coordination; complex systems; UAS; automation

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Fern, L. C. (2016). A Cognitive Systems Engineering Approach to Developing Human Machine Interface Requirements for New Technologies [Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1461248106

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Fern, Lisa. A Cognitive Systems Engineering Approach to Developing Human Machine Interface Requirements for New Technologies. 2016. Ohio State University, Doctoral dissertation. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1461248106.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Fern, Lisa. "A Cognitive Systems Engineering Approach to Developing Human Machine Interface Requirements for New Technologies." Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University, 2016. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1461248106

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

osu1461248106
1,006
© 2016, all rights reserved.
This open access ETD is published by The Ohio State University and OhioLINK.