HCTWorkshop110906

Control Room Collaboration and Control: Does it Work? : Control Room Collaboration and Control: Does it Work? 9th HCT Workshop, 11-12thSept 2006 University College London Human Centered Systems Hina Keval


Overview of Talk : Overview of Talk Describe: Research Problems Discuss: Pitfalls with Previous Control Room Research Research Findings from field work at public CCTV control rooms Conclusions to Field Work Future Work Q & A


Research Arena: CCTV & HCI/Ergonomics : Research Arena: CCTV & HCI/Ergonomics CCTV first used in London Underground 1961 Estimated excess of 14 million cameras in UK today Several changes in security have occurred: Crime rates gone up Terrorist attacks Perceived fear of crime risen Advances in CCTV technology Usage scenarios changing Increased funding


Research Questions: CCTV Control Rooms : Research Questions: CCTV Control Rooms More applications are being integrated into existing systems No assessment on operator task performance within CCTV control rooms How are operators coping with information demands in busy control rooms? Are control rooms physically designed to support cognitive tasks?


Previous Research: CCTV Control Rooms : Previous Research: CCTV Control Rooms Several ethnographic studies have studied workplace interactions Air traffic control centres (Bentley et al, 1992) Ambulance control rooms (McCarthy et al, 1991) Transport control rooms (Luff and Heath, 2001) Findings descriptive not prescriptive Very little analysis on HCI issues & design changes for tasks & technology set-up. Home Office evaluations (Gill et al, 2005a and Gill et al, 2005b) Use of technology in control rooms not examined CCTV technology changing at the time of the study


Previous Research: Cont… : Previous Research: Cont… Luff and Heath’s London Underground Control Room Study Some design issues given Ergonomics practice & HCI barriers to task performance ignored Purchasing expensive equipment Radically re-designing control room environment processes


Methodology : Methodology Distributed Cognition (Hollan et al, 1999) “…seeks to understand the organisation of cognitive systems.” - Useful to understand nature of task, processes involved when operators communicated and used technology to perform surveillance tasks. Ran series of ‘quick and dirty’ ethnographic observations at 6 control rooms: - Total of 25 operators / 6 managers and 6 supervisors interviewed – semi-structured questions - Conducted naturalistic overt observations ~ 5-6 hours


CCTV Control Room Research : CCTV Control Room Research Understand the organisational & general practices of CCTV control rooms within large cities. Identify types of technology used by operators & how they were used. Identify limitations concerning tasks and system design. GOALS…


Operator Tasks Identified : Operator Tasks Identified REACTIVE TASKS - Responding (2) PROACTIVE TASKS - Monitoring (3) ADMINISTRATION TASKS Tape labelling and preparing copies for police Creating incident reports


Problems Identified : Problems Identified CAN’T SEE “You don’t get us watching TV anymore” (2) TOO MUCH INFO “They just keep adding cameras.” “I can hardly concentrate in hear, it’s so noisy”


(4) Ineffective Search & Select Task : (4) Ineffective Search & Select Task Majority of operators don’t live in surv. area All control rooms visited – no maps linked to cams Staff drew their own maps for newcomers Need to memorise camera locations, numbers & screens Paper maps can go astray & need updating 1. Cameras Database 2. Map of Area i.e Camden with Cameras No.


Slide12 : Camera Number 10 – Gower Street


(5) Bad Ergonomics : (5) Bad Ergonomics Operator complained that old equipment left lying about. Work area cluttered Controls to equipment were poorly located, preventing operator in using camera controls properly 8 Different pieces of equipment!!


Field Work Conclusions : Field Work Conclusions Technology changing – need for assessment Lack of system and tool integration in CCTV control rooms Design should focus on operator tasks not just technology Workspace layout and expansion should consider impact on operator comfort, performance and health & safety not just what impact upgrades have on crime statistics


Future Work : Future Work 8 further ethnographic field studies carried out in control rooms in and out of London Police control rooms also studied Recommendations validated via reports to : Metropolitan Police at Heathrow Command & Control Airport 1 London Borough Control Room (South London) Findings will be used to form usability framework for CCTV users – where ergonomics and HCI factors are central to framework


References : References


Q & A… : Q & A… Thank you for your attention. Any questions ?