Human reliability and the impact of control function allocation in the design of dynamic positioning systems

Abstract

The design and function allocation of control in complex technological systems have mainly been technology driven, resulting in increased automation. A human or user perspective is rarely taken in the technological development. The pertaining attitude seems to be that increased automation will reduce the occurrence of human error and thereby ensure safer design and operation. Increased levels of automation, however, may come with a cost of reduced situation awareness for the human operator. This is also the case in the design of the dynamic positioning (DP) system for vessels. Accident statistics show that the frequency of collisions in certain DP operations is above the acceptance criteria and that a combination of technical and human failures were the main causes in nearly all accidents. This article underlines the importance of considering the role of the human operator and human reliability in the design and operation of DP systems. It presents a functional model of the DP system, and discusses current function allocation of control and its impact on operators' situation awareness and performance. This article concludes with recommendations regarding function allocation of control and visualization of operational risk to enhance operator performance and reliability.

Determining the likelihood of incidents caused by human error during dynamic positioning drilling operations

“…Indeed, lists of incidents are considered highly confidential and are rarely made public or accessible to researchers. Nonetheless, it is known that in the oil and gas industry in general (Kariuki and Löwe, 2007; Manca and Brambilla, 2012), and the offshore drilling sector in particular (Hogenboom et al., 2020), incidents due to direct and indirect human factor failings are not rare.…”

“…The few exceptions include an article in which Hogenboom et al. (2020) used logistic regressions to explain the influence of human error on maritime incidents; while Boullosa-Falces et al. (2017) applied this method as part of a variable selection process before then constructing a prediction model.…”

“…The main risk in any DP operation is the loss of position, or excursion, during operations. The DPO should, therefore, react rapidly to correct or mitigate the consequences of any such loss (Hogenboom et al., 2020). The severity of these accidents is greater in adverse weather conditions.…”

Prediction of Loss of Position during Dynamic Positioning Drilling Operations Using Binary Logistic Regression Modeling

“…Nonetheless, to the authors' knowledge, there are very few publications in the literature that address the use of logistic regression modeling for the prediction of incidents in the maritime industry. In this field, the research has mainly focused on explaining the influence of human error in those incidents, as discussed by Hogenboom et al [35] and Weng et al [36], or as part of variable selection for prediction modeling, as applied by Boullosa-Falces et al [37].…”

Safety Verification for Autonomous Ships

“…An initial study on the new role of the human operator in autonomous ships shows that the potential for flawed decision making is still significant (Ramos, Utne, Vinnem, & Mosleh, 2018). Allocating functions to software controllers that previously were allocated to human operators may contribute to increased likelihood of human error because it may compromise the operator's situation awareness and system understanding (Hogenboom, Rokseth, Vinnem, & Utne, 2017).…”