ABSTRACT
The partial listings of preattentive feature depictions are adapted from Healey, and are intended to identify those basic features that may lend themselves most readily to use in C2 displays. Researchers have identified a limited set of basic visual attributes that both real and on-screen objects can possess, which are perceived very accurately and rapidly by the human visual system completely outside of conscious thought or reasoning. Other research indicates that as the primary visualization tool for assessing a tactical situation, the weapons system's human-machine interface (HMI) is supremely important; indeed, in a command and control context, system HMI usability may be the primary determinant of Situational Awareness (SA). Though the system was found to be operating normally, an overly complex and poorly designed weapons-control interface was blamed for the tragedy, as the weapons system operators were unable to accurately characterize and interpret the aircraft's actions in a timely fashion.
