Perspective Traffic Display Format and Airline Pilot Traffic Avoidance

Abstract

Part-task experiments have examined perspective projections of cockpit displays of traffic information as a means of presenting aircraft separation information to airline pilots. Ten airline pilots served as subjects in an experiment comparing the perspective projection with plan-view projections of the same air traffic situations. The pilots' task was to monitor the traffic display in order to decide if an avoidance maneuver was needed. Pilots took more time to select avoidance maneuvers with a conventional plan-view display than with an experimental perspective display. In contrast to previous results, if the pilots selected a maneuver with the perspective display, they were more likely to choose one with a vertical component. Tabulation of the outcomes of their initial avoidance decisions with both perspective and plan-view displays showed that they were more likely to achieve required separation with maneuvers chosen with the aid of perspective displays.

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Baty, D. L. , Wempe, T. E. , and Huff, E. M. (1974). A study of aircraft map display location and orientation. IEEE Transactions on Systems, Man and Cybernetics. SMC-4, 560-568.

Bird, J. M. (1975). On the display of three dimensional air traffic control situations. Applied psychology (Note A.P. 47). Birmingham, England: University of Aston.

Boeing Commercial Airplane Company . (1977). Cockpit displayed traffic information study (Report No. D6-42968). Seattle, WA: Author.

Dreyfus, H. L. , and Dreyfus, S. (1986). Mind over machine. New York: Free Press.

Ellis, S. R. , and Palmer, E. A. (1981). Threat perception while viewing single intruder encounters on a cockpit display of traffic information (NASA TM 81341). Moffett Field. CA: NASA-Ames Research Center.

Ellis, S. R. , Kim, W. S. , Tyler, M. , McGreevy, M. W. , and Stark, L. (1985). Visual enhancements for perspective displays: Perspective parameters. In Proceedings of the 1985 International Conference on Systems, Man and Cybernetics (pp. 815–818). New York: IEEE.

Falzon, P. (1982). Display structures: Compatibility with the operator's mental representations and reasoning processes. In Proceedings of the 2nd European Annual Conference on Human Decision Making and Manual Control (pp. 297–305). Wachtberg-Werthoven, West Germany: Forschungsinstitut für Anthropotechnik.

Hart, S. G. (1982). Effect of VFR aircraft approach traffic with and without cockpit display of traffic information. In Proceedings of the 18th Conference On Manual Control (AFWAL-TR-3021; pp. 522–544). Wright-Patterson AFB, OH: Air Force Flight Dynamics Laboratory

Hart, S. G. , and Loomis, L. L. (1980). Evaluation of the potential format and content of a cockpit display of traffic information. Human Factors, 22, 591–604.

10.

Herbst, P. J. , Wolff, D. E. , Ewing, D. , and Jones, L. R. (1946). The TELERAN proposal. Electronics, 19, 125–127.

11.

Jenks, G. F. , and Brown, D. A. (1966). Three dimensional map construction. Science, 154, 837–846.

12.

McGreevy, M. W. , and Ellis, S. R. (1986). The effects of perspective geometry on judged direction in spatial information instruments. Human Factors, 28, 421–438.

13.

McGreevy, M. W. , Ratzlaff, C. , and Ellis, S. R. (1985). Virtual space and two-dimensional effects in perspective displays. In Proceedings of the 21st Annual Conference on Manual Control. (NASA CP 2428; pp. 29.1–29.14). Moffett Field, CA: NASA-Ames Research Center.

14.

Palmer, E. A. (1983). Conflict resolution maneuvers during near miss encounters with cockpit traffic displays. In Proceedings of the Human Factors Society 27th Annual Meeting (pp. 757–761). Santa Monica, CA: Human Factors Society.

15.

Palmer, E. A. , and Ellis, S. R. (1983). Potential interactions of collision avoidance advisories and cockpit displays of traffic information. In Proceedings of the Society of Automotive Engineers (Paper 831544; pp. 433–443). Warrendale, PA: Society of Automative Engineers.

16.

Palmer, E. A. , Jago, S. J. , Baty, D. L. , and O'Conner, S. L. (1980). Perception of horizontal aircraft separation on a cockpit display of traffic information. Human Factors, 22, 605–620.

17.

Poulton, E. C. (1974). Tracking skill and manual control. New York: Academic Press.

18.

Radio Technical Commission for Aeronautics . (1983). Minimum operation performance standards for the traffic alert and collision avoidance system (TCAS) (airborne equipment) (RTCA/DO-185, prepared by committee SC-147). Washington, DC: Author.

19.

Smith, J. D. , Ellis, S. R. , and Lee, E. (1984). Perceived threat and avoidance maneuvers in response to cockpit traffic displays. Human Factors, 26, 33–48.

20.

Verstynen, H. A. (1980). Potential roles for the cockpit traffic display in the evolving ATC system (Report No. SAE-800736). Warrendale, PA: Society of Automotive Engineers.

21.

Wickens, C. D. (1984). Engineering psychology and human performance Columbus, OH: Charles Merrill.