Information-Rich Design: A Concept for Large-Screen Display Graphics: Design Principles and Graphic Elements for Real-World Complex Processes

摘要

The objective in this thesis research is to mitigate two problems, which are typically experienced bycontrol room operators monitoring large-scale processes in centralized control rooms: i) How todesign for rapid perception of industrial-scale data sets? ii) How to avoid keyhole effects incomplex processes? In this thesis, these problems are approached through research into Large-Screen Display (LSD) design; the contribution is a concept named Information-Rich Design (IRD).The concept is not domain specific, and it is useable typically for nuclear and petroleum industries.IRD can be used as a starting point for user-centred design, as opposed to approaching theproblem from the technology end first. The thesis research is based on a broad perspective,through interaction design research methods: design exploration, design studies and designpractice.Design exploration was done on a small-scale early in the research process, and later throughthree complete LSD applications. The first two LSDs were implemented on full-scale nuclearsimulators, and the most recent was implemented for an operational nuclear research reactor.Crews of certified control room operators have provided feedback for design in an iterativeresearch process. Design studies were based on findings from basic, applied and clinical research:(1) human capabilities and characteristics, (2) principles for information visualization, (3) findingsfrom human-computer interaction and (4) research from other related display concepts. Designpractice from applying IRD commercially in Norwegian petroleum industry was fed back into theconcept.The thesis research suggests that LSDs should be designed from the ground-up, acting as a stableframe of reference for process monitoring, leaving details for desktop workstations. Researchfound that larger displays should support bottom-up data driven processes by presenting processdata as simple visual patterns, suitable for rapid visual perception. Further, LSDs should supportoperators in top-down search for information, and aim to avoid keyhole effects through externalizedgraphics, which do not load limited visual memory resources. Graphics should reduce visualcomplexity by creating visual hierarchies, giving critical information the most prominent visualsalience, while avoiding masking primary data from less important information. Based on this, thecontribution for LSD designs, are design principles and accompanying graphics.The IRD concept is theoretically validated, and externally validated through industrial applicationsand user tests. With a few concerns for inconsistency from using mathematical normalized scalesin graphics, and readability of the grey-layered colours, the concept is generally found to be areasonable approach on LSD design and the two research problems. The research contribution isnot radical or revolutionary; rather it extends what others have found for computer graphics forsmaller displays. It is positioned as applied research for LSD design, as a contribution to humancomputerinteraction. The innovative part of this thesis contribution is design-patented graphics forinformation presentation.Further work should focus on providing more quantitative performance data, and on performingcomparisons with other display concepts, particularly measuring Situation Awareness levels.Secondly, one should look at the question of consistency with other displays in the same setting. Anatural extension of this thesis work would be to look at direct process interaction through LSDs.