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Making sense with design BY DAN MACLEOD
INDUSTRIAL ENGINEERS FOCUS PRIMARILY ON PHYSICAL ERGONOMICS issues, such as heights, reaches, and motions. However, there are certain key concepts of cognitive ergonomics that everyone should be familiar with.
Cognitive ergonomics has to do with how we perceive information and make decisions. Aquick example provides the best introduction. If a light switch is mounted vertically, it conforms to our expectations that to turn on the lights, we flip the switch up. However, if the switch is mounted sideways, which happens sometimes, we don't know which way to flip the switch to turn on the lights. It violates our expectations and makes it easy to do the wrong thing.
This is a very simple example, but you get the idea. Now imagine a control panel on a complicated piece of machinery, where flipping a switch the wrong way could have dire consequences.
In industrial operations, an elementary understanding of cognitive ergonomics can help with the design of controls, displays, and signs in a way that can help reduce mistakes in general and improve safety in particular. Furthermore, reviewing some of the basic concepts helps round out an understanding of what it means to fit the task to the person and make things user-friendly.
To err is human
What is often thought of as human error may in fact be poor cognitive ergonomics. Many mistakes and errors that people make may really be attributable to poor design, such as confusing dials or controls that do not operate as expected. These are often-overlooked issues that have great implications for process improvement in industry.
With careful study of the errors people make, it is possible to predict human reactions and then design tools and systems to take these reactions into account. With good ergonomics, errors can be reduced in products and processes ranging from simple household appliances, such as a cooking range, to complex control panels, such as for an aiplane or a nuclear power plant.
General rules
Standardize. Many errors are caused by inconsistencies in how information is displayed and how controls work. To prevent mistakes, a general rule is to ensure that similar devices work the same way. Agreeing on a standard helps prevent errors. The operation of...