Uncontrollable automatisms in the Cockpit for the Boeing 737 MAX crashes responsible? US President, Trump keeps today’s aircraft is far too complex. Can be improved the human-machine-interaction?
What are the human dramas took place on Board the Lion Air flight 610, not like you imagine. The empty data from the recovered flight recorders but a harrowing picture of an eleven-minute tragedy. Immediately after the Boeing 737 Max 8 took off early in the morning around 05:45 local time, began the massive problems in the Cockpit. 26 Times the Pilot tried to put the nose of the machine, again and again, the machine pressed, but the nose back down. Abnormalities were also evident for changing speeds of the machine.
A graphic in the final report of the Indonesian National transportation safety Committee (NTSC) illustrates this dramatic confrontation between man and machine, which ended after 11 minutes abruptly when the plane crashed about 450 miles per hour into the sea, and all of the 189 inmates in the death crack.
Sober data of a tragedy: the records of the flight recorder
The investigation report suggests the conclusion that a faulty Sensor had transmitted faulty information to the automated control system “Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System” (MCAS). Critical: This System is actually by the pilot switching off, the man had the final decision-making authority over the machine, which is also required by law. But the seem to have the totally stressed-out Lion Air pilots, according to the investigation report, or realized have known. It seems that many pilots of other Airlines had been not about the existence of this new Software inform. Accordingly, Boeing has drawn attention after the Crash in Indonesia once again on the new Software in a Bulletin.
The key data could be read out from this black box from a Lion Air flight 610
Third-Given To Fly
That aircraft will respond differently, as the Pilot wants, and also applies to other types of aircraft, and aircraft manufacturers. Because assistance systems to help avoid pilot error, particularly in stressful situations such as the climb shortly after the Start. This is extremely helpful and works very well.
But only if the systems work fine. If, however, such as the angle of attack blade (so-called Angle of Attack Sensors, AOA) are defective, such incorrect data or the on-Board computer crashing, then actually as the help of imaginary systems can be a deadly risk. This have shown many (near-) crashes. Shocked pilots reported that they had hardly any control of the aircraft and the automated error correction only with the greatest effort to overcome.
Risk Factor Man!?
What caused the crash, technicians must clarify. Who is to blame, courts have to clarify. Who is responsible, but a person say:. Be it the pilots, who have not read the statement. Or the Airlines, or Boeing, which does not inform the pilots or no exercise have caused. Or the US aviation authority has not ensured that the instructions are read or the training have taken place.
Responsibility for the mechanics that have repaired the Sensor correctly, or a share of the aircraft according to the previous problem, the flight would have had to refuse to wear maybe. As always, responsible for this human failure or failure of the people, in turn, are:. For error, people are almost always responsible. To err is human. And, in some cases, also fatal.
Who has the final control of the aircraft: man or machine?
Mistrust of the human-machine-interaction
If the automated control system MCAS also played in the crash of Ethiopian Airlines-the machine is a role that will, hopefully, show the evaluation of the flight recorder. Usually several factors come together in the case of aircraft accidents, the only end in the total of the disaster.
US President, Trump has agreed to public pressure, finally a flight stop-over for the criticism concerning the Boeing 737 Max 8. But above all, he has his displeasure over complex planes in two Tweets revealed:
Trump does not want to be a genius like Albert Einstein, but rather by a more experienced pilot to be flown.
Beyond Trumps Zotigkeit these Tweets show a rare scepticism towards high-technology, which determines the people foreign.
Who is master and who is servant in the man-machine-interaction?
If people actually represent the actual risk can help an automation to minimize these errors. Now – in assistance systems, which are now a reality, and largely uncontroversial. But the Central question remains: Who makes the final decision? This question would answer the people very clear: the machine has to serve the people, the man decides.
This principle must also apply for very practical reasons, simply because the machines are still not so far. Automated control systems are based on data. The more data are available, the more informed the decision is.
In the event of unexpected situations, but machines often have big problems. Here the man is – still – a clear advantage, because he can perceive the context of unexpected situations much better, and faster, and also interpret, decide, explained Dr. Emanuel von Zezschwitz, Junior research group leader at the Institute of Computer Science 4 at the University of Bonn. Accordingly, machines must be adapted to people and not Vice versa.
As intelligent interface design, e.g. different colored buttons in stress situations, incorrect entries can prevent, so the famous red button, the machine can help. The machine should be according to the filter collapses from Zezschwitz in decision – making the primary assist, for example, from the überforder the amount of information – which is about a stressed-out pilots-the decisive facts or basis for decision-making. On the basis of which then the person can decide for him the final authority rests.
In the event of unforeseeable situations, the driver must be able to intervene still
The man wants to keep control
The contrary also come to the human endeavor, because man wants to always stay in control. Nevertheless, there are already some machine decisions, we accept people implied. In assistance systems such as the ABS antilock braking system. Here’s to driving the car may not engage the end of man.
The Co2Team (Cognitive Collaboration for Teaming) by Dr. Ing. Alain Pagani, from the German research center for Artificial intelligence pursues the idea that an artificial intelligence based System can assist the pilot through the use of Cognitive Computing-efficient.
By means of artificial intelligence could be collected from a huge amount of data, the crucial information and, if necessary, structures to be detected. For the people, or, for example, a stressed-out pilots, the artificial intelligence could filter out the decisive facts/basis for decision-making.
The man had to have the last say in every decision, says Pagani in the DW-Interview. He, too, believes that artificial intelligence (AI) should only assist, and that the machine should not have sole control. Support this research, among other things, by the way of the German Lufthansa AG. Self-declared goal of the research team, it is, “a technological and methodological Transition to a more independent air transport to propose, on a gradual reduction of the crew is based.” A reduction of the crew, however, is only possible if the limits of Automation are known and a relationship of trust between man and machine has been established, stresses Pagani.
Without people it is not
A Central reason for the adoption of automation – for example in the transport sector – is that people tend to represent a source of error than machines. The data also show that in most accidents, the human factor is a primary risk.
The Automation can reduce this significant source of error by the developers to replace the man, or the influence of the people. However, developers are also people. And in spite of countless security checks, no Software is completely error-free, because you have been programmed by the people.
Operational errors (such as a “MIS-operation”) are often to Development, concerns Dr. Steffen wischmann, group leader for the “data Economics and business models” in the VDI/VDE Innovation + Technik GmbH. Where tasks are too complex for automation, these tasks also, of all places, the people, “as the weakest link in the process chain,” said Wischmann. This “weakest link” will be replaced by the Automation, Steffen Wischmann, but at the same time the person should continue to monitor the highly complex machines, errors, and, if necessary, to intervene manually. All of this had referred to the researcher Lisanne Bainbridge in 1983 as the “irony of Automation”.
Also, Dr. Emanuel von Zezschwitz sees it as a huge challenge, the people in the automated processes constant, to involve, to keep the “User in the loop”, so to keep his attention high. Particularly sensitive is the period of Transition from machine to human. Because in the case of a pre-riding Automation, for example in Autonomous Driving, it must be ensured that the person is not overwhelmed when this “hand-over” of the machine or also calls, saying that he remains attentive, even if he was not challenged for a long time.
So far, only Vision: to be the Airbus of the future, not the Cockpit?
Lost Trust
It comes with the Automation, errors can never be completely avoided, this reinforces the reservations about the technology. Especially, if the causes and thus also the responsibilities remain unclear. Boeing needs to win back in the coming weeks, lost trust, otherwise the 737 MAX are not flying machines. May the MCAS is modified so that the System engages only partially in the aircraft and that the pilots keep when the System is still the final decision-making authority.
For the future, but it needs to be, especially the interaction of man and machine was further optimized. So, it must be ensured that the person is actually able to master the machine, and that of pilots, mechanics, Airlines, manufacturers or regulatory authorities in case of doubt, always opt for the security. Dr. Steffen wischmann refers to the fact that there is in the current flight management systems have a very high pent-up demand. This show is also an American study from the year 2013, according to the 60% of all pilots in case of accidents information, no sufficiently high level of situational awareness to have about the circumstances of accidents obsessed.
In the decision-making machinery can help, thanks to artificial intelligence, but the responsibility can ultimately only human. “Thus, the human in the increasingly connected and automated world, however, remains in the position to make an informed choice, you need to be human Strengths and weaknesses with every new development known in the Design are taken into account. This can only be achieved if the future users are involved from the beginning in the development process of new technologies,” said Dr. Emanuel von Zezschwitz, from the University of Bonn.
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