Visual Operator Interface for Peripheral Alarm Attention Guidance
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Solution Overview
Problem
Operators in industrial control stations often miss urgent information on non-central screens due to cognitive overload, leading to delayed reaction times, especially during emergencies, as they become 'blind' to surrounding events while engaged in tasks, and conventional alarm systems can introduce noise fatigue.
Innovation Solution
A visual operator interface method that prioritizes monitoring areas by gradually reducing visibility of non-prioritized screens with subtle cues and guidance to direct attention to critical information, using gaze tracking and conditional notifications to ensure non-intrusive intervention.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of information
If multiple screens are arranged in the control room, then the operator can access more information simultaneously, but the operator cannot see all screens in the central visual field and may miss urgent information on peripheral screens
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies color changes by dynamically adjusting the luminance or color saturation of display areas. When an alarm or urgent event occurs in a peripheral monitoring area, that area's visual output is enhanced (e.g., increased brightness or color intensity) to attract the operator's attention without requiring physical movement or screen switching.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements dynamics by making the visual characteristics of display areas adaptive and time-varying. The system continuously monitors the technical system state and dynamically adjusts which monitoring areas receive enhanced visual emphasis based on current priorities, transforming a static multi-screen layout into a dynamic attention-guiding interface.
2Reliability
If conventional alarm notification systems are used, then operators can be alerted to alarms, but operators experience alarm fatigue and may switch off sound notifications, introducing time delay in responding to urgent alarms
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by directing enhanced visual attention to specific local areas of the display corresponding to urgent events, rather than using uniform alarm notifications across all screens. This localized visual enhancement allows operators to quickly identify which specific monitoring area requires attention without being overwhelmed by global alarm signals.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces visual attention guidance as an intermediary mechanism between the alarm system and the operator. Instead of directly notifying the operator through sound (which causes fatigue), the system uses visual emphasis on peripheral display areas as an intermediate step to naturally guide the operator's gaze toward urgent information.
3Ease of operation
If operators focus on one screen at a time, then they can engage deeply with current tasks, but they may miss urgent information on other screens
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements periodic action through continuous monitoring of the technical system state and periodic assessment of which monitoring areas require enhanced visual emphasis. The system rhythmically evaluates alarm conditions and dynamically adjusts visual attention guidance, creating a continuous cycle of detection and response without disrupting the operator's current task flow.
Data Source
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AI summary
There is proposed a method of controlling a visual operator interface (200) comprising a plurality of predefined areas (210), which include one or more monitoring areas configured to display visual elements representing a current state of a technical system (290). According to the method, it is determined (110) that one of the monitoring areas is to be prioritized; and an incomplete visibility decrease (140) in at least one other area of the visual operator interface is initiated, wherein the prioritized monitoring area is unaffected by the visibility decrease.