Development of comprehensive HFE guidelines for the evaluation of NPP human systems interfaces

Advanced control room (ACR) concepts are being developed in the commercial nuclear power industry as part of future reactor designs. The ACRs will use advanced human-system interface (HSI) technologies that may have significant implications for plant safety in that they will affect the ways in which the operator interacts with and supervises an increasingly complex system. The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) reviews the HSI aspects of control rooms to ensure that they are designed to good human factors engineering principles and that operator performance and reliability are appropriately supported to protect public health and safety. The NRC is developing guidelines to support its review of these advanced designs. This paper discusses (1) the development of guidelines for advanced HSI review, (2) the integration of those guidelines with existing guidance, and (3) a methodology for further guidance development.