Overview of Displays for nuclear control rooms: a good practices study

Abstract

Overview displays are commonly used in nuclear control rooms for improved overview and situational awareness. There is, however, a need to gain more knowledge into how such displays can be used in effective ways with operator performance in mind. The purpose of this paper is therefore to collect good practices useable as input to both new builds and modernization projects. A user-centric approach is adopted by interviewing crews of nuclear operators. Data is collected through semi-structured interviews based on concepts of situational awareness. In total eight crews (28 operators) were introduced to one of two large overview display, before the interview sessions. The results suggest that the overview display should be a stable frame of reference, leaving detailed interaction to the operator workstation. They should present key data, guiding operator actions in both normal and abnormal situations. The use of trends and balancing graphs are given positive feedback. There are concerns regarding both readability and consistency issues for the overview displays used in the study. It is suggested that the overview displays help the crew to have a shared experience, being at common ground. We conclude that the findings are congruent with the major industrial standards and guidelines, and therefore represent good practices. We are, however, cautious of using the term best practices due to weaknesses in the study procedure. We suggest advancing this work with further studies with other overview display implementations.

Keywords: Human Factors, Nuclear Control Room, Best Practices

DOI: 10.54941/ahfe1005045