Blink Coding for Information Display 1

Abstract

Ten men scanned cathode-ray-tube displays to search for designated target items. Search time increased with increasing display density, and was 50% faster when a 3-cps blink was imposed on items of the target class. The blinking of nontarget items was almost equally effective, indicating that blink can be used either as an inclusion or exclusion code. In comparison with steady, nonblinking displays, search time was not significantly different for displays in which all items blinked, or in which a random selection of items blinked. It is concluded that for visual search tasks of the kind reported here, there is no marked deleterious effect of blink coding on symbol legibility, and no marked interference attributable to irrelevant blink.

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Cohen

Dinnerstein

A. J.

Flash rate as a visual coding dimension for information (USAF WADC Technical Report 57-64). Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio, May 1958 (ASTIA Document AD 118 018)

Crawford

The perception of light signals: The effect of the number of irrelevant lights. Ergonomics, 1962, 5, 417–428

Crawford

The perception of light signals: The effect of mixing flashing and steady irrelevant lights. Ergonomics, 1963, 6, 287–294

Duncan

D. B.

Multiple range and multiple F tests. Biometrics, 1955, 11, 1–42

Gerathewohl

S. J.

Conspicuity of steady and flashing light signals: variation of contrast. Journal of the Optical Society of America, 1953, 43, 567–571

Gerathewohl

S. J.

Conspicuity of flashing signals of different frequency and duration. Journal of Experimental Psychology, 1954, 48, 247–251

Goldstein

D. A.

Lamb

J. C.

Visual coding using flashing lights. Human Factors, 1967, 9, 405–408

Lash

J. D.

Prideaux

G. F.

Visibility of signal lights: A digest of available test data pertinent to the many aspects of present day practical signal problems. Illuminating Engineering, 1943, 38, 481–492

Long

G. E.

The effect of duration of onset and cessation of light flash on the intensity-time relation in the peripheral retina. Journal of the Optical Society of America, 1951, 41, 743–747

10.

Markowitz

An investigation of flashing visual indicators: Determining optimal flash rate and duty cycle. Human Factors, 1971, 13, in press

11.

McCormick

E. J.

Human factors engineering. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1964

12.

Morgan

C. T.

Cook

J. S.

Chapanis

Lund

M. W.

(Ed.) Human engineering guide to equipment design. New York: McGraw-Hill 1963

13.

Poole

H. H.

Fundamentals of display systems. Washington: Spartan, 1966

14.

Poulton

E. C.

Kendall

P. G.

Thomas

R. J.

Reading efficiency in flickering light. Nature (London), 1966, 209, 1267–1268

15.

Smith

S. L.

Color coding and visual search. Journal of Experimental Psychology, 1962, 64, 434–440

16.

Smith

S. L.

Color coding and visual separability in information displays. Journal of Applied Psychology, 1963, 47, 358–364

17.

Smith

S. L.

Goodwin

Nancy C.

Blink coding for information display. Paper presented at 14 th Annual Meeting of the Human Factors Society, San Francisco, October 1970

18.

Smith

S. L.

Thomas

D. W.

Color versus shape coding in information displays. Journal of Applied Psychology, 1964, 48, 137–146

19.

Wolin

B. R.

System concept and human factors in information display. In Howard

J. H.

(Ed.) Electronic information display systems. Washington: Spartan 1963, 3–14

20.

Woodson

W. E.

Conover

D. W.

Human engineering guide for equipment designers. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1964

21.

Ziegler

P. N.

Reilly

R. E.

Chernikoff

The use of displacement, flash and depth-of-flash coded displays for providing control system information (NRL Report 6412). U.S. Naval Research Laboratory, Washington, D.C., July 6, 1966