Maritime HCI

 

Computers, software, and displays play an increasing role in the maritime sector. It is noticeable that more and more embedded systems interact with the end users via computers. This means, among other things, that these systems’ operational and graphical capability, more or less keep pace with office standards.

Recent projects:

Pilot study of image quality in lock CCTV

Commissioned by RWS, ErgoS has a performed a small pilot study on the image quality of lock cameras. Presently, little is known about the image quality of camera images in relation to viewing distance and task. To gain more insight into this matter, interviews are held with lockmasters and measurements are taken at Sluis Weurt. The direction of further research is currently discussed.

 

Development of standards for SCADA system with touch screen controls

ErgoS has contributed to the development of presentation and interaction standards for a new generation SCADA systems at ships. A unique aspect is that the systems are implemented as touch screen, controlling large technical components without physical buttons or levers. Applying these systems on ships requires that the system is usable in both bright daylight and in darkness.

 

Human-Computer Interaction course for Hitt radar and traffic control systems

ErgoS provided Hitt with a tailored in-company Human-Computer Interaction course for the developers of radar and traffic control systems for shipping.

 

Alarm management in remote offshore locations

An emergency management system was developed Total E&P, allowing the company to deal with the alarms of a large number of gas production platforms, sometimes located 100 km away.

 

Best practices

Below, we give a small selection of practical tips that might be useful in the design of maritime HCI:

  • Do not use ‘standard’ TFT displays for applications in which night vision plays a part. If ships, buoys and other nautical objects must be perceivable in the dark, it is important that the displays can be adjusted to extremely low light levels. This requires that not only the TFT matrix itself, but also the backlight of the screen can be dimmed. This feature is only available on specially designed screens.
  • Make smart use of 'new' screen sizes. A port worker or supervisor often manages a long traffic area. This is usually displayed better on a few widescreen aspect ratio (16:10 or 16:9) displays, then on a series of displays with a 3:4 aspect ratio.
Het is belangrijk om voorafgaand aan de beoordeling na te denken over praktisch haalbare verbetertrajecten. De beoordeling moet zich namelijk richten op punten die vroeg of laat verbeterd kunnen worden.


Verbetertrajecten op diverse niveaus zijn:
  • Opnieuw en beter ontwerpen. Bij ontwikkeling van nieuwe software zodanig specificeren en begeleiden dat de geconstateerde problemen niet opnieuw worden 'ingebouwd'.
  • Verbeteringen aanbrengen. De geconstateerde problemen verhelpen door de leverancier/ontwikkelaar de beoogde verbeteringen aan te laten brengen.
  • Selectie. Bij aankoop de potentiële software beoordelen en selecteren op bruikbaarheid.
  • Configuratie en systeembeheer. De software-configuratie (systeeminstellingen, gebruikersinstelling, macro's e.d.) benutten voor een zo groot mogelijke bruikbaarheid.
  • Werkwijze en gebruik. Gebruikers voorlichten en instrueren om software op een gezondere manier in te stellen en te gebruiken.
  • Andere hardware. Soms biedt andere hardware uitkomst; dit betreft dan vaak het beeldscherm.