Integrating HCI concerns into the design of safety-critical interactive systems: a case study

Any poorly designed system is inconvenient or annoying to its users and those affected by its existence. In safety-critical applications, ill-conceived designs can be lethal as, by definition, failures have a safety implication. The authors report on their experiences of transferring a cognitive modelling technique (programmable user modelling) into industrial design practice in collaboration with Praxis Critical Systems Limited, focusing on the safety engineering of a major communications system.