Engineering Data Compendium. Human Perception and Performance, Volume 2

Abstract : As a result of his experience in the United States Army Air Force during World War II, Dr. Paul M. Fitts fully comprehended the need for the translation of human engineering design criteria and data into a form readily accessible to the design team. He appreciated the complexity of the typical crew interface design problem, in terms of the multiple technologies involved, the interdisciplinary skills required of the design team, and the many compromises necessary to achieve a practical solution to a complex design issue. This belief in the value of concise, reliable human performance data for practical application by designers was reflected in his approach to applied problems throughout his professional career. This concern for enhancing the value of basic technology to aid the solution of practical problems has continued to influence the organization responsible for the development of this Engineering Data Compendium and thus it represents an extension of Paul Fitts' conviction that a well-designed crew interface significantly contributes to the safety and effectiveness of the system in which it is incorporated. This Engineering Data Compendium is the second in a series of tools aimed at providing the data necessary for the human engineering design of crew systems. The first was the two-volume Handbook of Perception and Human Performance, edited by K. Boff, L. Kaufman, and J. Thomas and published by John Wiley and Sons, New York, in 1986. The Handbook contains an extensive treatment of the basic data on perception and performance designed for use by the human engineering specialist. It can be considered the primary reference for the Compendium. Although necessarily limited in scope, e.g., physical anthropology is not treated, the Compendium provides in-depth treatment of human perception and performance in terms of the variables that influence the human operator's ability to acquire and process information, and make effective decisions.