Operator Centered Design of Ship Systems

Cognitive science research, much of it supported by the Office of Naval Research, is bringing about a scientific revolution in our understanding of the human operator. It is yielding computational theories of human cognition and perceptual/motor activity that provide precise quantitative predictions of important variables such as the times required to complete tasks or to learn them in training. Although the scope of coverage of these theories is limited and basic research aimed at expanding them is on-going, they already have much to offer in aiding the design of ship systems that will optimize the combined effectiveness of human operators and the systems they will be using. This presentation discusses 1) what can be done now, 2) tools under development that will facilitate the use of these theories, reducing the labor involved, and 3) a long-term vision for what might be achieved in this area. Appearing in Proceedings of “Engineering the Total Ship Symposium, 2004” Held at NIST, Gaithersburg, MD March 17-18, 2004, organized by the American Society of Naval Engineers.