Integrating aircraft warning systems

With the increase of warning Systems the cockpit will become more crowded with different warnings. Cockpit crews spend a lot of time recognizing the cockpit warning indicators, identifying the nature of the problem, and choosing the correct procedure. To avoid increasing workloads in the cockpit, warning Systems need to be integrated. This paper discusses the possibilities for integration, based on a multi-agent System. Two layers of integration can be identified that prevent unnecessary warnings and prioritize simultaneous warnings: direct agent-to-agent communication, and a 'selector'. From a human perspective, the integration should lead to a decision support System rather than a new automation which needs to be monitored only.