MACS: Maritime Control System of the Future

Developments in ship bridges and machine control rooms have to a large extent taken place according to an addition principle - control systems have been acquired after market introduction and added to older solutions. As a result different interfaces and equipment systems of different generations are placed side-by-side, leading to incoherent control- and steering solutions. A lack of information-ergonomic coherence in maritime control rooms is a challenge for human operators. The operators must adapt t o several different interfaces with incoherent control and input modes; the consequence of this is an increased risk of operator errors, slips and mistakes. The consortium has come up with the proposal of a novel design concept for human-computer interf aces in maritime control rooms that is flexible and inexpensive. The design concept seeks to combine Tangible User Interfaces (TUIs such as levers, throttles and rudders), with New BiDirectional (BiDi) Touch technology that has capabilities to communicate with the TUIs that can be placed (and moved) on top of the touch screen. The novel design concept allows for integration of TUIs that can be manipulated with natural human movements with the ability to represent information using the flexibility inheren t in GUIs. Information represented in the GUI can be designed to capitalize on the human ability for pattern recognition and the preference for visual perception and visualization in problem solving. This could improve user satisfaction and also the usabi lity of maritime control systems. Because of the lack of coherence in traditional interfaces the consortium will employ a user-centred design process that employs research-based knowledge from the domain of maritime human factors to ensure coherence of i nformation presentation and use.