Design of a Human Factors Procedure Analysis Tool

Design of a Human Factors Procedure Analysis Tool (PAT) for FAA Certification Process Heather Johnson Houda Kerkoub Shaida Latifi Mumtahina Mahmud Alexis Nittoli System Engineering & Operations Research, George Mason University Context Approach Gap Analysis Flight demand increase 1 From a Procedure… Initial Approach Procedure Problem Air traffic modernization Program (Next. GEN) New devices to be installed on aircraft More devices to be certified Capacity for flights is constant Opportunity for improved certification process • Federal Aviation Regulations are now requiring all functions to be evaluated. If certification process remains constant, it will be expensive and time consuming. • Current Certification Process is performed by a limited number of Human Factors Inspectors and Designated Engineering Representatives. These inspectors lack objective and quantifiable means to evaluate the devices. • Current process is paper based, manual, and lacks cockpit interaction. • There is an increasing amount of operational improvements needed to be certified. A gap is produced when the number of years it takes to certify all new devices, takes longer than the number of years available for certification. Procedure • Task Operator Action • • • Task Specification Language Used to decompose tasks within a Standard Operating Procedure into Operator Actions Each Operator Action Category is mapped to a statistical distribution input to the simulation. The output of the simulation shows a distribution of time of multiple operators performing the task The probability of Failure to Complete the Task is a decision support tool for certification 2 Create a Sequence Diagram 3 Perform a Monte Carlo Simulation GAP Accidents human errors as main factors New regulation (FAR 25. 1302) include human factors in device certification Requirement: analysis of ALL tasks and functions Additional work for FAA Human Factors inspectors Monte Carlo Simulation Histogram Number of available FAA Human Factors inspectors constant Operator Action Need A Procedure Analysis Tool is needed to improve the certification process by applying an objective, efficient, cost effective, and accurate test. Business Case Example Procedure Prototype Cost for Procedure Analysis Tool Cost for Means of Compliance (MOC) Monte Carlo Simulation will show a distribution of operators performing the Hold at Present Postion Prototype models a perceptual, cognitive, and motor processes to simulate Time to Complete the Task (TCT) Number of operators performing the Task Monte Carlo Simulation of Hold at Present Position Task Savings in Cost Savings in Time 2500000 Cumulative Current System Cost/Year $250, 000. 00 $200, 000. 00 2000000 Cumulative Hours Current System 1500000 1000000 500000 $150, 000. 00 Cumulative Alternative Cost/OI per Year $100, 000. 00 $50, 000. 00 $0. 00 0 Years Time to Complete the Task [sec] $300, 000. 00 Cost in Millions Time to Complete Task Cumulative Hours PAT 2008 2011 2014 2017 2020 2023 2026 2029 Human Factors Metrics Database Perception, Cognition, Motor Probability of failure to complete the task 3000000 2008 2011 2014 2017 2020 2023 2026 2029 Perform a Procedure (SOP) Number hours saved Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) Replication Time to Complete the Task Years