Human-system Interfaces to Automatic Systems: Review Guidance and Technical Basis

O’Hara, John M.; Higgins, Joanne

doi:10.2172/1013461

Cited by 30 publications

(17 citation statements)

References 136 publications

(141 reference statements)

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“…In this situation, operator awareness of the status of the plant's safety is supported by procedure execution. When sequences are automated, the possibility of loss of situation awareness increases (O'Hara & Higgins, 2010). Some evidence for this concern in EOP use stems from tests conducted early in the N4 design.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In addition, we considered HFE issues identified in recent reports on automation (O'Hara & Higgins, 2010) and degraded I&C conditions (O'Hara, Gunther, & Martinez-Guridi, 2010). These reports contained many HFE issues that can be interpreted within the context of CBPs.…”

Section: Appendix -Hfe Research Issues Pertaining To Computerbased Prmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…These issues are common to all applications of automation (O'Hara & Higgins, 2010). CBPs automate certain aspects of procedure use.…”

Section: A3 Role Of Plant Personnel In Procedures Management: Trust Amentioning

confidence: 99%

“…CBPs can perform many functions and can employ different levels of automation for each (O'Hara & Higgins, 2010). The decision as to the appropriate level of automation will impact operator performance, situation awareness, workload, and errors.…”

Section: A4 Level Of Automation Of Procedures Functionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Review of the IEEE Standard for Computerized Operating Procedure Systems

O’Hara¹,

Higgins²

2010

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Increasingly nuclear power plant procedures, such as emergency operating procedures, are being presented in computer form with functionality to support operator use and management of the procedures. The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) currently has guidance for the review of computer-based procedures (CBPs); however, there remain CBP functions and human performance issues for which up-to-date guidance is lacking. The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) has initiated a standard development effort to address the human factors engineering (HFE) aspects of CBP systems. When completed, it may provide guidance to supplement the NRC staff's review criteria. The purpose of our study was to evaluate the suitability of the IEEE Standard for use in the NRC's HFE safety reviews of CBP systems and to ensure that the guidance meets the NRC's standard for scientific and engineering rigor used in its own guidance development efforts. We established the following criteria with which to evaluate the Standard: (1) it should meet an existing need of NRC reviewers, (2) it should be based in sound HFE principles, (3) it should be thoroughly peer-reviewed, and (4) it should address CBP-related human performance issues identified in the literature. This report describes the methodology we used to evaluate each criterion. Our evaluation concluded that the Standard generally does meet these criteria, however several areas were identified for which additional clarifications are needed. Thus consideration of the Standard's use by the NRC is supported. The standard evaluation methodology developed in this study can be generally applied to the review of other HFE standards being considered for possible use or endorsement by the NRC.iii

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Appendix -Hfe Research Issues Pertaining To Computerbased Prmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…These issues are common to all applications of automation (O'Hara & Higgins, 2010). CBPs automate certain aspects of procedure use.…”

Section: A3 Role Of Plant Personnel In Procedures Management: Trust Amentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: A4 Level Of Automation Of Procedures Functionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Review of the IEEE Standard for Computerized Operating Procedure Systems

O’Hara¹,

Higgins²

2010

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“…Another factor contributing to the failure to properly monitor automation is that automation often performs tasks independently from plant personnel (O'Hara & Higgins, 2010). Personnel often have other tasks for which they are responsible.…”

Section: Endsley's Sa Model (Shown Inmentioning

confidence: 99%

Development of an Initial Model of Human-Automatio

Oxstrand¹,

O'Hara²,

Joe³

et al. 2013

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viii ix EXECUTIVE SUMMARYThe U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and the commercial nuclear power industry are exploring alternatives to meet energy demands in the United States. As part of this mission, they are looking at small modular reactors (SMRs) and advanced small modular reactors (aSMRs). The DOE, and in particular, the Office of Nuclear Energy (NE) is sponsoring research and development (R&D) on small reactors, as evidenced by NE's 2010 Report to Congress, Nuclear Energy Research and Development Roadmap. In short, DOE-NE's mission is to assist in revitalization of the U.S. nuclear industry, including development of advanced designs, through R&D. By doing so, NE can help accelerate deployment of new plants in the short term, support development of advanced concepts for the medium term, and promote design of revolutionary systems for the long term.All aSMR designs will employ advanced digital instrumentation, controls, and human-machine interfaces (ICHMI), technology that is significantly more advanced that existing analog systems in the light water reactor fleet. The U.S. DOE recognizes that ICHMI research, development, and demonstration is needed to address the specific technical challenges and technological gaps of ICHMI for aSMR designs. The new aSMRs will be designed to utilize new automation and instrumentation and control technologies, and there are a number of concerns about how those technologies will affect human performance and the overall safety of the plant. It is expected that aSMRs will rely on automation to a greater extent than the current nuclear power plant fleet. However, there are many issues and concerns that still need to be addressed related to how automation should be designed and implemented. For example, further researcher is needed to address how humans and automation will collaborate under various operational conditions.The Human-Automation Collaboration (HAC) research project is one of three research efforts related to investigating how the advanced technologies planned for aSMR designs will affect human factors and human performance. Given the increased use of automation in aSMR designs, the HAC research project is investigating the consequences of allocating functions between the operators and automated systems. The research effort addresses the questions of what the collaboration level should be and how it should be implemented to have the greatest positive impact on overall plant performance and safety. The research project is also developing a model of HAC, which will support aSMR designers when evaluating their proposed approach for conduct of operations in terms of how humans and automation collaborate. The research results will inform the integration and cooperation between plant staff and automation, with the purpose of maximizing productivity and safe operations of aSMRs. One key research goal is providing a technical basis to support the reduction in aSMR operations and maintenance costs through reduced staffing per unit, which is made possible by greater integration ...

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