1. Effects of Automation in the Aircraft Cockpit Environment
Skill Degradation
Situation Awareness
Workload
Good
Group #1: Julian Archer
Hambisa Keno
Yul Kwon

2. Automation Overview What is Automation? Types of Automation
Automation is any system component that removes the necessity for direct human control of certain processes (Sherman, 1997)
Types of Automation
Control
Warnings and Alerts
Information
Work on remember a simpler def
Control – Replaces human control with machine control
Warnings and Alerts – Replaces need for manual monitoring for hazardous conditions
Information – Provides information that would otherwise have to be retrieved/ calculated manually

3. Automation Overview Early Stage 1914
The autopilot connected a gyroscopic Heading indicator and attitude indicator to hydraulically operated elevators and rudder
It permitted the aircraft to fly straight and level on a compass course without a pilot's attention

4. Automation Overview Major Transition More control automation
More alert and warning automation

5. Automation Overview
Current

6. Automation Overview Benefits of Automation?
Reduces workload and fatigue
Precision in the handling of routine tasks
Reliability
Increased efficiency and productivity
Economical utilization of machine
Not always a good thing
Like with another piece of technology that has an advantage, there is a disadvantage
Based on frequency occurrence in the literature, three issues seemed initially interesting to look at…

7. I'm planning, don't disturb me!
Skill Degradation
Overview
Inherent disadvantage of manual flying skill decay through non-practice
Manual Flying Skills
1. Psychomotor skills
Observable e.g. physical actions
Psychomotor skills
- Performed by the pilot on the controls to orient the aircraft
Cognitive skills
- Performed by the pilot to respectively monitor, plan and predict current and future states of the aircraft to satisfy required navigation objectives
I'm planning, don't disturb me!
2. Cognitive skills
Hidden e.g. mental actions

8. J. M. Childs, Spears, & Prophet, 1983
Skill Degradation
Psychomotor Skill Degradation
Performance decay is present regardless of time-lapse between training
Performance quickly returns to a proficiency of 75% in 5 minutes of practice (Ammons et al., 1958)
J. M. Childs, Spears, & Prophet, 1983

9. The series model of pilot control (adapted from McRuer, 1982)
Skill Degradation
Cognitive Skill Degradation
Cognitive processing is a crucial skill involved in every aspect of flight
Mental models help!
The series model of pilot control (adapted from McRuer, 1982)
Flight data combined with visual and sensory cues have to be synthesized for the pilot to make an appropriate and adequate control input to the aircraft
The pilot must close several loops synchronously
The ‘inner’ attitude control loop is closed in order to satisfy the ‘outer’ flight path control loop
Control system limits the pilot and  allows for direct manipulation of the aircraft’s basic six degrees of freedom, i.e. translational movements (heaving, swaying, surging) and rotational movements (pitching, yawing, and rolling).  
The pilot must then manipulate lower order parameters in order to control higher order goals (e.g. altitude and flight path)
This control process is further complicated when lag is added to the system
Research has shown that pilots who had significant experience flying non-glass cockpit aircraft developed robust mental models of performance characteristics during different phases of flight
Over-reliance of the automation inhibits the pilot’s ability to develop robust mental models for manually aircraft control (Ebbatson, 2009)

10. (Adapted from Research Integrations Inc., 1997-2007)
Skill Degradation
General Evidence for Skill Degradation
Accidents
Investigations
Studies
Observations
(Adapted from Research Integrations Inc., )

11. Skill Degradation Accident Analysis Data Skill-Based Errors
Visual scanning breakdowns
Poor technique
Over-controlling the aircraft
NTSB Accident records
Commercial Aviation
63.6% of aircraft accidents
≥ 1 skill-based error
Constant over 7-year period
Shappel & Wiegmann, (2000)
Work on the other accident support

12. Skill Degradation Case study of Colgan Air Flight 3407
February 12th, 2009
Continental Connection
Bombardier Dash-8 Q400
28:37 to 29:33

13. (Adapted from Research Integrations Inc., 1997-2007)
Situation Awareness
Why Situation Awareness
The most frequent causal factor of all accidents (41 percent) was lack of positional awareness in the air.
(UK CAA Global Fatal Accident Review )
The second most common primary causal factor was “lack of positional awareness in the air,” generally resulting in controlled flight into terrain
(Flight Safety Digest December 2004–March Special FSF Report: Killers in Aviation)
(Adapted from Research Integrations Inc., )
From the statistics and reports

14. Situation Awareness What is Situation Awareness?
“…the perception of the elements in the
environment within a volume of time
and space, the comprehension of their
meaning, and the projection of their
status in the near future”.
(Mica Endsley, 1988)
Even though correct or an absolute
In terms of aviation

15. Situation Awareness Levels of Situation Awareness
Seek and combine data into
meaningful information (Level 1 : perception)
Understand what the information
means (Level 2 : comprehension)
Use your understanding to think
ahead and reconsider the plan
(Level 3 : projection)
Thinking ahead
Updating the model 3
Understanding
Comparison with mental models 2
Collecting and combining the data around you
In this stage with the in u gathered ud try to understand actually means
Where you take that meaning info to and use that to look ahead and prepare for the future.
AS a pilot
Anticipate the contingencies during the whole phase
Scanning
Gathering data 1
Feedback, check, monitor

16. Situation Awareness What Factors Reduce Situation Awareness? Workload
Degraded operating conditions
Pattern Recognition
Crew issue
Communication
Attention
I can explain a bit more in detail of what had happened since I was actually stationed at the base during the time of the accident.
One of my friends who was in the investigation team told me that there were sequence of events that took place that resulted in reduction fo situation awareness. The flight crew had were coming in from australia that particular day. The weather was pretty bad with low visibility and
Heavy tail wind. This factor made them do a circling approach and what it baisically is that you do your normal inst app and once you get to a
Certain alt you would manuever to land on the other side of the rwy. The problem to this was even though they have flown over several tmes
To the airport it was first time for both of them doing a cicling app at the airport. In the process the captain got mad at the co for not prepring
For the flight the way he was supposed to. You can imagine the the high tension inside the cockpit. During that time the ATC acually steped in and
Warned them about the hill front but therer was some confusion with the metrix they were using to indicate the altitude. Where the atc was using
Ft as to the meter that the chinese crew were accustiomed to back home. This incident illustrates how multiple factors effecting SA can
Lead to fatal accident like this one.

17. Situation Awareness Sometimes you see only half of the picture
How does Automation Impact Loss of SA?
Vigilance, Complacency and Monitoring
Active vs. Passive Role
Feedback
Lack of understanding of automation
Over relience on automation plays a big role.
When the flight crew becomes accustomed in using automation and starts
Trusting it too much it puts them in a more passive role rather than being more
Actively involved in the flight process. Another factor would be insufficient feedback.
Because todays automated systems are so complex the pilots have a hard time in
Understanding what goes behind the scenes. Lack of understanding in automation can actually lead to
An Increse in workload that can effect loss of SA. Hambi will talk more in detail of the subject.
Sometimes you see only half of the picture
but need all of it to understand the situation

18. Workload Humans have limited capacity for:
Processing information. (display, alarm, communication, documentation)
Holding items in memory
Making decisions
Performing tasks

19. Workload
Excess Workload can result in human performance issues such as:
Slower task performance
Errors such as slips, lapses and mistakes
Under-load can result in:
Boredom
Loss of situation awareness
reduced alertness

20. Workload Measures of Workload Subjective Ratings
Physiological Measures
Performance measures

21. Workload Multi Attribute Task Battery (MATB) System Monitoring
Tracking
Communications
Resource management

22. Workload The Irony of Automation
Counterproductive workload consequences of automation where;
Automation increases workload when already at its peak
Lowers workload when pilots are under-loaded

23. Workload Role Transition
Automation has resulted in transition of pilot role from controlling to monitoring
Results in excessive increase in cognitive demand
Humans are ill-suited for monitoring and will perform poorly

24. Workload Cognitive Overhead
Performing extensive cognitive evaluation of the benefit of automation against cost of performing it manually

25. (Adapted from Research Integrations Inc., 1997-2007)
Workload
General Evidence for Workload Issues
82 documents addressed the impact of automation on workload
42 of these documents asserted automation can have adverse effect on pilot workload
(Adapted from Research Integrations Inc., )
transition

26. Conclusion Accident Statistics vs.Phases of Flight
Distribution of fatal accidents by flight phase for (Boeing, 2008)

27. Conclusion Addressing Skill Degradation Manual handling recency
Challenges
Operating procedures require automation
Pilots flying Internationally are conscious of their lack of flying proficiency
Rely on automation
Pilots are mission-oriented
Take Control
Flip the Switch
modify

28. Conclusion Augmented Displays
Display that improves upon reality by superimposing info over actual
environment
The have been substantial improvements that are being made in effort to increase the crews SA
Augmented heads-up displays and tech like enhanced vision system is making it
Easier for the crew in obtaining more accurate info of its surroundings.

29. Conclusion Automations to improve SA
Design improvements - Display design capitalizing on spatial relationships
People in the earlier days were mostly focused on improving the tech itself
But now they are actually working with the human beings from the developmental stages to look into how the
System works in terms of addressing the human factor issues. This is actually much harder than in seems because
The human factor issues are correlated in a very complex way. You might think more automation would decrease workload
On the crew but in can be the other way around.

30. Conclusion Addressing Workload Issues
Automation should allow for maintenance of optimal workload level (neither too high nor too low)
Assessment of workload under automation should consider both steady state and transient operating conditions
Task redistribution between team members offsets workload; automation driven single pilot operation concept needs to be approached with caution

31. Conclusion Addressing Workload Issues
Automation workload assessment should consider visual and auditory input, cognitive activity and psychomotor skills
The 4D resource theory can be used as a design input while developing human-machine interfaces to reduce pilot workload

32. Conclusion Task Allocation Strategies Design Time (Static)
Conclusion
Task Allocation Strategies
Design Time (Static)
System designer sets the level of automation.
Adaptive Automation
Contextual allocation based on performance tracking
Adaptable Automation
Automation is a subordinate
that collaborates with the
human.

33. Conclusion Tasking Interface for Adaptable Automation User Interface
Analysis and Planning Component

34. Conclusion Proof of Concept for Adaptive Automation

35. Questions?