John A. Volpe National Transportation Systems Center (U.S.)

United States. Federal Aviation Administration. Human Factors Research and Engineering Division

Tech Report

United States

John A. Volpe National Transportation Systems Center (U.S.)

NTL-AVIATION-Aviation Human Factors ; NTL-AVIATION-Aviation Safety/Airworthiness ; NTL-SAFETY AND SECURITY-Highway Safety ; NTL-SAFETY AND SECURITY-Human Factors ;

There is currently no common symbology standard for the electronic display of navigation information. The wide range of display technology and the different functions these displays support makes it difficult to design symbols that are easily recognizable across platforms. The goals of this effort are to identify features of navigation symbology that are problematic when presented on electronic displays and to develop a method to design and evaluate symbology that takes into account the different media and platforms on which they will be displayed.

This report presents the findings of two studies related to the design of symbology for electronic displays of navigation information. Experiment 1 addressed whether symbols have key features that are necessary for recognition, i.e., symbol stereotypes. Experiment 2 tested symbol-feature rules, which define a consistent way to design symbols, to determine if pilots could learn and apply them. The resulting guidelines were provided to the Federal Aviation Administration, industry, and the International Civil Aviation Organization and are documented in this report. Suggestions for evaluating symbology are also provided.

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Volpe National Transportation Systems Center, Technical Reference Center