The influence of the process characteristics on the role of the human operator in process control

Rational design of a process control system using an on-line computer requires a definition of the total control task and an allocation of function between the human operator and the machine. Both the nature of the total task and its subdivision depend very much on the process characteristics, which vary widely between different processes. The functions normally performed by a process control computer are described and those consequently left to the operator are defined. The wide variety of the operator's functions and the implications of this for studies of the operator's performance and for the design of the man-machine interface are emphasised. This article was originally presented as a paper at a symposium on Data Reduction, Communication and Presentation for Process Operation organised by the Institute of Measurement and Control at the University of Sussex, Brighton.