Autonomous systems are inherently designed to be self-sufficient onlyunder particular circumstances, for specific activities. the environmentneeds to be tailored to align with these design boundaries, ensuringthat technical systems operate as intended. this paper proposes thatinsights from resilience engineering can enhance the self-sufficiency ofso-called autonomous systems, consequently bolstering their adaptivecapacity in unforeseen or unpredicted scenarios. two cases of autono-mous systems are examined to illustrate how this enhancement can beachieved. the conclusion drawn is that the resilience envelope of a sys-tem can be augmented by enabling the system to adapt to multipledesign cases, by defining and prioritizing the core values of the system,and by designing the system to possess a framework for situationsrather than being confined to a singular situational frame. the implica-tions for the design of human-machine systems are also discussed.

An essential task of an air traffic controller is to manage the traffic flow by predicting future trajectories. Complex traffic patterns are difficult to predict and manage and impose cognitive load on the air traffic controllers. In this work we present an interactive visual analytics interface which facilitates detection and resolution of complex traffic patterns for air traffic controllers. The interface supports air traffic controllers in detecting complex clusters of aircraft and further enables them to visualize and simultaneously compare how different re-routing strategies for each individual aircraft yield reduction of complexity in the entire sector for the next hour. The development of the concepts was supported by the domain-specific feedback we received from six fully licensed and operational air traffic controllers in an iterative design process over a period of 14 months.

Drone traffic, consisting of anything from small quadcopters for video and photography to large eVTOL transporting people, is expected to grow rapidly as soon as the challenges currently barring urban flights can be solved. One of the main challenges is how to automate authorization while both keeping full control over where and how drones fly over specific areas, and at the same time allowing the operators the freedom they require to successfully provide their services. While restrictions are necessary, being overly restrictive on plans has a negative impact on capacity, safety and efficiency. In this article we propose the combination of no-fly zones and flight grids into design elements for airspace design, to be used only where and when necessary. City planners can use these design elements to make both strategic decisions and real-time updates, and thereby set the rules for an automated system for planning and authorization. We describe the design elements, how to automatically find the optimal end-to-end route between or through these elements, a set of modifications or extension to improve flexibility even more, and demonstrate the efficacy of the approach through example airspace design patterns and by showing the resulting traffic in a drone traffic simulator.

Initiating communication and conveying critical information to the human operator is a key problem in human-automation collaboration. This problem is particularly pronounced in time-constrained safety critical domains such as in Air Traffic Management. A visual representation should aid operators understanding why the system initiates the communication, when the operator must act, and the consequences of not responding to the cue. Data glyphs can be used to present multidimensional data, including temporal data in a compact format to facilitate this type of communication. In this paper, we propose a glyph design for communication initialization for highly automated systems in Air Traffic Management, Vessel Traffic Service, and Train Traffic Management. The design was assessed by experts in these domains in three workshop sessions. The results showed that the number of glyphs to be presented simultaneously and the type of situation were domain-specific glyph design aspects that need to be adjusted for each work domain. The results also showed that the core of the glyph design could be reused between domains, and that the operators could successfully interpret the temporal data representations. We discuss similarities and differences in the applicability of the glyph design between the different domains, and finally, we provide some suggestions for future work based on the results from this study.

Traffic management in aviation, shipping, and rail transport shows similarities and dissimilarities in the work process. For example, they share the temporal aspect, but different levels of urgency in the control work set different requirements on monitoring, decisions, and actions. However, few studies have been presented that model and compare the different domains in terms of temporal decision-making. The Joint Control Framework (JCF) is an approach to analyse and temporally model operators’ control processes from a cognitive systems engineering perspective. In this study, we have used JCF to map, and compare, cognitive joints, such as perceptions, decisions, and actions, in temporally challenging control situations in air traffic control, maritime vessel traffic service, and train traffic management. Data was collected collaboratively with traffic operators, focusing on (1) identifying challenging traffic situations and (2) jointly modelling the temporal decision-making patterns of these situations using simplified JCF. Post-analysis was done by breaking down the results into different processes and comparing domains to ascertain how operators maintain control. An intermediate level of activity—between general monitoring and work with specific vehicles—was identified: processes-in-focus. A shared problem arises in the shift between general monitoring and the processes-in-focus. All processes-in-focus comprise cognitive joint cycles of perceptions, decisions, and actions. However, depending on the framing of processes-in-focus, the patterns of joints, such as temporal extension and complexity, differ. In the remainder of the article, implications for the interaction design, in particular the potential for human–AI/automation teaming with higher levels of automation and cognitive autonomy, are discussed.

entering an era where humans and synthetic agents are supposed to collaborate and cooperate, adequate models of human intent are cru-cial for coordinated teamwork. Unfortunately, although there is a need for such models, the concept of intent is ambiguous and approaches to model intent from a human-centric perspective are scarce. Building upon theoretical and methodological foundations, this study aims to address these gaps by presenting a conceptualisation of intent along-side an approach. specifically, leveraging the six levels of cognitive control outlined in the Joint control Framework, a provisional model of human intent alongside a defined and operationalised concept is presented. Building on these foundations, a novel approach is pro-posed. Utilising seven scenario-based interviews, the value of these contributions is demonstrated through an example case in the context of Manned-Unmanned teaming. it is concluded that intent should be understood as a multi-faceted concept shaped by situated constraints, where intent is formed through a commitment to choices by context-sit-uation and means-end reasoning. it is also concluded that the approach is useful, particularly since it can glean insights from choices considered and committed, both being essential in the design of synthetic team-mates’ capability to adapt to their human partner’s agency.

With advances in artificial intelligence, machine learning, and cognitive modelling, unmanned aircraft are expected to actas human-like wingmen in the near future. For fluent and effective manned–unmanned teaming, synthetic wingmen must beable to account for and adapt to their partners’ intent with little or no communication. To enable such abilities, it becomescrucial to identify the requirements that makes intent explainable to synthetic wingmen, necessitating approaches to describeand analyse intent from a human-centric perspective. To address this issue, this paper reports on findings from using WorkDomain Analysis to design and analyse models of situated intent with six levels of cognitive control (frames, effects, values,generic, implementations, and physical). Through a literature review and seven subject matter expert interviews, a synthesizedmodel was designed to represent fighter pilots’ intent in a manned–unmanned teaming scenario. Using the synthesized modelas the context, a transfer of control and a link loss situation were further described and analysed. Experiences show that WorkDomain Analysis can provide a practical and applicable means to model situated intent, particularly since designed modelscan be re-utilised to model intent in similar situations. Furthermore, the model analyses show the importance of accountingfor fighter pilots’ adopted frames since small variations of the framing of the situations can propagate throughout the modelresulting in conflicting or inconsistent intent. The paper concludes that synthetic wingmen must be able to reason about all six levels of cognitive control, requiring a more holistic approach to make intent explainable.

In industrial applications where the physical parameters are highly interconnected, keeping the process flow steady is a major concern for the operators. This is caused by the sensitivity of system to the process dynamics. As a result, a slight adjustment to a control parameter can significantly affect the efficiency of the system and thus impact the financial gain. Paper pulp production is an example of such a process, where operators continuously investigate the potential of changes in the process and predict the consequences of an adjustment before making a decision. Process parameter adjustments prescribed by simulated control models cannot be fully trusted as the external disturbances and the process inherent variabilities cannot be fully incorporated into the simulations. Therefore, to assess the viability of a strategy, operators often compare the situation with the historical records and trends during which the processes in the plant ran steadily. While previous research has mostly focused on developing advanced control models to simulate complex pulp production process, this work aims to support operators analytical reasoning by provision of effective data visualization. The contributions of our design study include a domain problem characterization and a linked-view visual encoding design, which aims to enhance operator's mental models independent of particular users or scenarios. Finally, by reflecting on the advantages of our choice of task abstraction technique, inherited from the ecological interface design framework [5], we reason for the generalizability of our approach to similar industrial applications.

Along with the increase of digitalization and automation, a new kind of working environment is emerging in the field of air traffic control. Instead of situating the control tower at the airport, it is now possible to remotely control the airport at any given location, i.e. in a remote tower center (RTC). However, by controlling the airport remotely, the situational awareness and sense of presence might be compromised. By using directional sound, a higher situational awareness could potentially be achieved while also offloading the visual perception which is heavily used in air traffic control. Suitable use cases for sonification in air traffic control were found through workshops with air traffic controllers. A sonification design named SonAir was developed based on the outcome of the workshops, and was integrated with an RTC simulator for evaluating to what degree SonAir could support air traffic controllers in their work. The results suggest that certain aspects of SonAir could be useful for air traffic controllers. A continuous sonification where the spatial positioning of aircraft were conveyed was experienced to be partially useful, but the intrusiveness of SonAir should be further considered to fit the air traffic controllers’ needs. An earcon that conveyed when an aircraft enters the airspace and from which direction was considered useful to support situational awareness.