Information Ergonomics: Expediting Maintenance Workflow Using Mixed Reality

Abstract

Vehicle maintenance places high physical and cognitive demands on its practitioners, requiring technicians to access documentation of multiple media types that describe both the physical space and the actions within it. Technicians rely on documentation, collaboration with local and remote technicians, and their own research to address the challenges they face. While job aids such as manuals, build sheets, online tutorials, and contact with more expert or specialized technicians provide vital information, they also complicate the information landscape in which technicians work. We examine three everyday scenarios wherein vehicle maintenance technicians are impeded by poor information ergonomics. We explore the causes of unnecessary overhead, overload, and errors and their impacts on workflow. Taking lessons learned from the artifacts and coping strategies employed by seasoned maintenance technicians, we recommend uses of augmented reality to increase information fit to facilitate better workflow, increased efficiency, and reduced lifetime maintenance costs.