HUMAN-SYSTEM INTEGRATION

It’s a basic axiom: “Technology should be designed to maximize the performance of the people who use it.”

Yet the reality is that too often technology is developed for only one class of user or for a subset of intended applications. For example, a leading cause of medical errors is technology that is poorly designed to deal with the rapidly changing demands of patient care.

Aptima is a leading provider of Human-System Integration (HSI) services that optimize the use of technology by people. We focus on two primary areas that are critical to technology success: technology evaluation and user interface design.

Technology evaluation and development. Aptima applies quantitative, model-based techniques to assess innovative technologies and evaluate how effective they will be in complex sociotechnical environments. This approach identifies key technology requirements early in the development life cycle. We then use this knowledge to evaluate and develop new technology concepts, typically well before traditional techniques can be effectively applied. Once prototype systems are available, we define measures of human and technology performance to identify potential critical points of failure.

Optimizing the human interface. Aptima helps organizations design, develop, and assess human-technology interfaces for complex systems. We use a Work-Centered Design approach founded on a deep knowledge of the domain and user. The goal is to help workers and warfighters make better decisions faster. To achieve this end, we create a model of the mission domain. Interface features are then based on the user’s location within the workflow and the information required at that point in time. This powerful approach yields effective interfaces that supports decision making – sometimes in life-and-death situations.

Aptima in action. Our technology evaluation techniques have been applied to a wide variety of applications including new soldier-assist technologies for Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), and hand-held information devices providing on-site mission support for Navy SEALs.

Aptima’s human interface work includes a patient status display for the “Operating Room of the Future” installed at Massachusetts General Hospital, an air traffic control display for critical airspace monitoring, and an interface for weapons launch operations at Kwajalein Missile Range.