Gaze-Tracked Automation Display for Pilot State Awareness
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Solution Overview
Problem
In automated systems, particularly in aircraft, operators often fail to notice or understand state changes caused by the system, leading to erratic behavior and potential accidents due to the complexity of automatic piloting and lack of direct operator intervention.
Innovation Solution
A method that includes displaying system parameters and states on a dedicated display, using gaze tracking to verify the operator's awareness of these changes, and providing alerts when the operator is unaware of state changes, ensuring they comprehend the reasons for these changes through targeted textual or auditory notifications.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If automated management is implemented to simplify system control, then ease of operation is improved, but operator awareness of state changes deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements a feedback mechanism by detecting operator gaze direction and providing visual feedback through highlighted display zones. When the operator looks away from critical state change information, the system highlights the relevant zones to ensure awareness, thus maintaining both automation benefits and operator situational awareness.
Solution Approach 2:
The gaze tracking device acts as an intermediary between the operator and the automated system. It monitors operator attention and mediates information presentation by dynamically highlighting relevant display zones, ensuring the operator notices state changes without requiring direct visual monitoring of all system parameters.
2Loss of information
If gaze tracking is used to monitor operator attention, then operator awareness is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The display system serves multiple functions: it displays system parameters, provides feedback about operator attention, and dynamically highlights relevant information. This multi-functionality reduces the need for separate dedicated devices for each function, thereby limiting the increase in overall system complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The system monitors its own operational context by integrating gaze tracking data with system state information. The display automatically adjusts its presentation based on detected operator attention, making the system self-aware and self-adjusting without requiring complex external control mechanisms.
3Loss of information
If multiple display zones are monitored to ensure comprehensive awareness, then operator understanding is improved, but difficulty of detecting and measuring increases
Solution Approach 1:
The display is segmented into multiple functional zones (first display zone for system parameters, second display zone for system states). The gaze tracking system independently monitors attention to each zone, allowing comprehensive coverage of critical information while simplifying the detection process through zone-based segmentation rather than continuous full-screen analysis.
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention relates to a method for managing an automated system comprising a display (10) and adapted to be controlled by a human operator and by at least one automatic controller, the method comprising a step of triggering a condition (23) associated with a parameter of the system, a step of displaying said parameter of the system on the display in a parameter zone (12, 24), a step of automatic change of state (22) of the automatic controller between a first state of the automatic controller and a second state of the automatic controller subsequent to the triggering of the condition, a step of displaying said second state on the display in a second-state zone (20). The method furthermore comprises a step of detecting, by a device for tracking the gaze of the operator, the zones of the display that are looked at by the operator and a step of verifying that the zones looked at comprise at least the second-state zone (20) and the parameter zone (12, 24).