Evaluation of operators' performance for automation design in the fully digital control room of nuclear power plants

Abstract

AbstractRecent technical developments in computer hardware and software have meant that human–machine systems can be automated in many respects. If automation fails, however, human operators can have difficulty in recognizing the existence of a problem, identifying what has failed, and taking corrective action to remedy these out‐of‐the‐loop (OOTL) performance problems. Several studies have suggested that taxonomies of levels of automation (LOAs) and types of automation (TOAs) can be used to solve OOTL problems. This study examined the impact of LOAs in process control automation within the context of nuclear power plants (NPPs). A simulation experiment in an NPP is performed to validate this framework using an automatic mode and a semiautomatic mode. Mental demand is found to be significantly reduced under the automatic mode; however, participants felt frustrated with this LOA. Situation awareness is found to be similar in the two modes. The results of an end‐of‐experiment subjective rating reveal that participants were evenly divided between the two modes with respect to generating and selecting functions. It is therefore suggested that human operators be involved in generating and selecting functions under an automatic mode. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.