Human Error Modeling

Under this Phase II Small Business Innovative Research contract, we propose to develop a human-error modeling tool, EGLEAN, that can be used by designers and engineers early in the design process to identify likely causes of human error and engineer them out of the system. EGLEAN will combine the strengths of an accurate high-fidelity model of human performance with a simple behavior description language for hierarchical task decomposition and a usable developer interface. EGLEAN will facilitate rapid modeling and analysis of interface candidates in complex team environments, allowing a broader exploration of the design space and a deeper understanding of the design tradeoffs than possible in typical development processes. EGLEAN will result in lower development and operational costs for resulting designs, and safer, more effective, and more error-tolerant systems. Although some tools exist for analyzing designs for usability, and techniques exist for identifying human error, no tool or associated technique exists that is easy enough to be used by normal engineers on a regular basis. If successful, this work will represent a significant innovation in the areas of human-system interaction and error-tolerant design.