Structured task analysis in complex domains

This paper describes the application of MUSE, a human factors structured design method, to the design of systems supporting the work of air traffic controllers at European airport control towers. The paper illustrates the derivation of a generalized task model starting from the analyses performed at four airports and the construction of the composite task model of the future system. Other important concerns of the work are the harmonization of the different tools in the airport control tower and the assessment of the impact of these tools on the human operators. The potentialities and limitations of applying the method are discussed in particular with respect to the complexity of the domain and the nonstandard features of the air traffic control as a MUSE application. Indeed, air traffic management is widely acknowledged as a complex domain to design for, and the documented application of human factors structured methods to design are all referred to the modelling of worksystems (as opposed to working positions or workstations) with a single operator. In the present application one has multiple operators and multiple design goals (design, harmonization, assessment). The work presented is a contribution to the extension and better definition of structured methods and their applicability to the analysis of complex domains.