Measuring nuclear control room operators’ performance in the context of overview displays

Abstract

Overview Displays have a potential to provide a high-level, comprehensive view of complex data, systems, or processes. They are used within control room settings to facilitate a quick understanding of the overall context. There is, however, scarce documentation of the effects of the use of overview displays on human performance. We ran two studies with two different overview displays. The two studies were intended to mimic different concepts and implementations of overview displays. In Study 1 the large screen overview display used a design concept consistent with the workstation displays design. In Study 2, an alternative overview display was presented, composed of several smaller/tiled screens, being graphically inconsistent with the workstation display design (e.g. different colour codes). The results indicate that there might be a cost on performance linked to the implementation of overview displays when the different interfaces available in the control room are incongruent. These findings are discussed attending to design and human factors approaches. We conclude with a reflection over the limitations of the study and possible recommendations on the use and implementation of overview displays in new and already existing control rooms.

Keywords: Human Performance, Overview Displays, Interface Design, Nuclear Control Rooms

DOI: 10.54941/ahfe1005046