Evaluating two aspects of direct manipulation in advanced cockpits

ABSTRACT

Increasing use of automation in computer systems, such as advanced cockpits, presents special challenges in the design of user interfaces. The challenge is particularly difficult when automation is intermittent because the interface must support smooth transitions from automated to manual mode. A theory of direct manipulation predicts that this interface style will smooth the transition. Interfaces were designed to test the prediction and to evaluate two aspects of direct manipulation, semantic distance and engagement. Empirical results supported the theoretical prediction and also showed that direct engagement can have some adverse effects on another concurrent manual task. Generalizations of our results to other complex systems are presented.

References

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Index Terms

• Applied computing

  • Physical sciences and engineering

    • Aerospace

• Human-centered computing

  • Human computer interaction (HCI)

    • HCI theory, concepts and models

    • Interaction paradigms

  • Interaction design

    • Interaction design theory, concepts and paradigms