Computer-Simulated Aircraft Inspection Tasks for Off-Line Experimentation

Previous research on civil aircraft inspection and maintenance, (e.g., Shepherd, 1990) has shown the potential for human factors interventions. However, for specific interventions to be tested and detailed models to be developed a system for rapid, off-line experimentation is required. Two computer-simulated inspection tasks are described, one for non-destructive inspection and the other for visual inspection. Both systems have been used for experiments, the brief results of which are presented. Future extensions to the programs, and other experiments under way, are discussed.