Cognitive-Compatible Human-Machine Interfaces by Combining Ecological Interface Design and Object-Oriented Programming

Abstract

Most of human-machine interfaces (HMIs) for process control disseminated in the industry are mostly technique-oriented and don't reflect operators' needs. This approach tries to compensate this lack through offering user-oriented interfaces characterized as cognitive-compatible. If HMIs have to be cognitive-compatible, then designers should take various cognitive objects such as reasoning, memory and knowledge into account. The ecological interface design (EID) offers a well-founded methodology for designing HMIs because, on the one hand, the internal physical behavior of the technical system will be exposed through the interface; and, on the other, a harmonic and an effective interaction between operators and machines will be achieved. This kind of interaction is to see as the positive result of utilizing the physical and functional characteristics of the technical system as design inputs. Additionally, EID is oriented to the three human behavior levels: the skill-, rule- and knowledge-based levels known as the human-information processing. In order to obtain cognitive-compatible HMIs constructed of EID objects, a suitable means like the object-oriented programming (OOP) in combination with a powerful development tool such as the Visual Studio .NET Integrated Development Environment (IDE) is needed. As OOP is based on nouns and reflects how the real world is perceived, it disburdens developers in translating their design ideas and models into computer applications.