Electronic Human Factors Guide for Aviation Maintenance

Author(s):  
Julie A. Jones ◽  
T. Kiki Widjaja

Technological advances in the area of computer software, hardware and peripherals have made digital information technology feasible. The Federal Aviation Administration Office of Aviation Medicine has been investigating the application of such technology. The overall goal is to increase accessibility and to improve distribution of Human Factors research reports and information to the aviation maintenance industry. The latest digital documentation project is the Electronic Human Factors Guide for Aviation Maintenance (E-Guide). The E-Guide is a hypermedia version of the Human Factors Guide for Aviation Maintenance (the Guide) which is described elsewhere in this symposium. This paper describes the design goals, key features, and future plans for the E-Guide.

Author(s):  
Michael E. Maddox

A safe and efficient air travel system depends on three elements; design, operation, and maintenance. The Human Factors profession essentially began and matured in the aviation environment. The aircraft cockpit and the skills involved in piloting have been the subjects of more human factors research than any other single topic. Likewise, the topic of aircraft design has been the beneficiary of many of the tools and procedures developed to embed human capabilities into products. The third component, maintenance, seems to receive attention only when it is shown to be a contributing factor in a mishap. In an effort to embed proper human factors principles in the aircraft maintenance environment, Congress, through the Federal Aviation Administration Office of Aviation Medicine (OAM), has mandated that more emphasis be placed on human factors in maintenance operations. A major product of this initiative is a Human Factors Guide, being developed to provide practical, useful, and usable guidance to supervisors and planners in the aviation maintenance industry. This paper describes the goals, form, and content of the new Human Factors Guide.


Author(s):  
William B. Johnson

Human Factors and ergonomics professionals are often asked to “show” how their research has affected on-the-job human performance. They are asked to show measurable changes in human effectiveness and efficiency at work. There is always the demand for HF&E researchers to create procedures and tools that can guide non-human factors personnel to make the “right” human-centered decisions. This symposium will show and distribute such tools that have been designed and tested in an aviation maintenance environment. For over six years now, the Federal Aviation Administration Office of Aviation Medicine has conducted an extensive research program centered on human factors in aviation maintenance and inspection. The research program has earned a reputation of demonstrating a “hands-on” understanding of aviation maintenance and maintaining a close working relationship with all segments of the industry. The symposium will begin with an overview of FAA-sponsored research results applied to aviation maintenance and safety over the past six years. In the second paper the Human Factors Guide for Aviation Maintenance, completed in 1995, will be described. The third presentation will demonstrate a CD-ROM version of the Guide. The presentation shall also discuss human-computer interface issues pertinent to developing interactive multi-media information systems. The final presentation will show a multi-media software package to conduct ergonomics audits in a variety of industrial environments. The system has evolved from three years of ergonomics audit research in aviation maintenance workplaces. Each of the session presentations will demonstrate and distribute HF&E tools to session attendees.


1988 ◽  
Vol 32 (5) ◽  
pp. 340-340
Author(s):  
Richard S. Hirsch

Following a brief review of how the human factors community achieved its present focus and circumstance, the discussion deals with what future preoccupations and opportunities may face human factors practitioners, such as computer software and documentation evaluations, the development of standards and guidelines, the avoidance of exposure to product liability cases, and the presentation of legislative testimony, among other concerns and challenges. Also examined are the roles that human factors funding and organizational structures may play in facilitating or inhibiting the effectiveness of human factors research and acceptance of the results obtained.


Author(s):  
Michael E. Maddox

The Aloha Airlines B-737 accident in 1989 prompted a general evaluation of aviation maintenance and inspection practices. A consistent finding from the Aloha analyses was that human-factors-related issues played a significant role in the accident. In the intervening period, the FAA Office of Aviation Medicine (AAM) has sponsored a wideranging, applied human factors research program. The Human Factors Guide for Aviation Maintenance (the Guide) is the primary vehicle for channeling the results of the AAM's research program into the aviation user community. This paper describes the development process of the Human Factors Guide for Aviation Maintenance. We include a discussion of how the existing base of research results has been made accessible and, more importantly, usable to aviation maintenance supervisors and inspectors. We also describe the considerations related to widely disseminating the information and guidance contained in the Guide. We believe this to be the first time that detailed human factors guidance from such a broad topical range has been tailored to a particular, applied, user domain.


Author(s):  
James F. Parker

Safety considerations require that air carrier maintenance be of the highest quality and essentially error-free. Economic considerations require that maintenance activities be as efficient as possible. Success in meeting both safety and economic goals depends on the performance of those working in the aviation maintenance community. A human factors guide can be of value in supporting and enhancing the performance of aviation maintenance personnel. One end product of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) program on “Human Factors in Aviation Maintenance” is a guidebook presenting human factors information oriented specifically toward the air carrier maintenance workforce. The Human Factors Guide presents established principles of job design and work. Coverage is broad and includes a variety of topics considered important in determining maintenance effectiveness and in the control of maintenance error. The preparation of the Human Factors Guide was done in a manner to ensure that needs of users were addressed. Size and format were selected in terms of user preferences. Information obtained through a series of FAA-sponsored human factors meetings plus that gained from a survey of maintenance personnel guided both the selection of topics and the presentation of materials.


Author(s):  
Gopinath Meghashyam

This paper describes an ergonomic auditing software system, one of the tools used for performance enhancement of aircraft inspectors. This tool was developed at Galaxy Scientific Corporation, in cooperation with the State University of New York at Buffalo, for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). The purpose of the development task was to integrate a variety of ergonomic audit tools into a comprehensive package. This ergonomic auditing system called “ERgoNomic Assessment Program” (or ERNAP), carries out an ergonomic evaluation for maintenance and inspection operations. ERNAP can also be used to help designers build ergonomically efficient procedures and systems. ERNAP evaluates existing/proposed tasks and setups in the application of human factors/ergonomic principles, and suggests ergonomic interventions. The package consists of a user interface, an inference engine, a printing module, and a reference database. The user interface supports user learning, helps guide the user through the steps, describes the less familiar ergonomic principles, allows the user to access on-line help, and is simple to use. The inference engine evaluates the user inputs based on the reference database and different models of analysis. This package maintains consistency with the Human Factors Guide for Aviation Maintenance which is reported within this session.


Author(s):  
Konrad Morgan ◽  
Madeleine Morgan

Since the inception of the Internet in the late 1960´s, technological advances in the field of Information Communications Technology (ICT) have created an ever-expanding digital arena for the development of human innovation, education, expression, communication and interaction. However, the creation and use of this vast network of knowledge, whether it is for educational, commercial, entertainment or creative purposes, has also produced its own set of ethical challenges. This paper discusses the ethical implications associated with the topics of veracity, identity and ownership and the impact of these fundamental ethical issues on human behaviour in emerging digital technologies.


Author(s):  
William T. Shepherd ◽  
William B. Johnson

For over five years the Federal Aviation Administration has conducted extensive research and development to enhance human performance and safety in aircraft maintenance and inspection. Directed by the Office of Aviation Medicine(AAM) the program has engaged in pragmatic research capitalizing on basic scientific principles and a thorough working relationship with all levels of aviation maintenance practitioners. This paper describes a few of the example research products that are currently promoting safety and efficiency in maintenance applications worldwide.


Author(s):  
Doyle Arnold ◽  
Anand K. Gramopadhye ◽  
Jamie Bingham ◽  
Reena Master ◽  
Nitin Quadros

The aviation maintenance technician (AMT) is a critical component in ensuring the safety and reliability of the aircraft maintenance operations. Hence it is critical that students AMT's receive proper education and training that will prepare them for work in the hangar floor. Realizing this, a newly integrated curriculum for student AMT's was developed. This paper outlines the methodology that was used to assess the revised AMT curriculum that integrates alternative learning methodologies, and previous FAA sponsored human factors research into a coherent whole. The paper describes the assessment methodology, which was used to test how the curriculum helps meet educational objectives and student performance objectives.


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