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The 21st Century Cockpit: iPad Related Activities and the Affected Cockpit JCS

El-Hage, Elie LU (2024) FLMU16 20232
Division of Risk Management and Societal Safety
Abstract
In aviation, pilots engage in safety critical activities in the cockpit to guarantee a safe flight. Throughout history these activities have been transformed by introducing new artifacts in the cockpit, such as rules and technology, changing thereby the way in which pilots try to achieve safe flight outcomes. The recent introduction of the iPad in the cockpit of airlines, as part of the process of developing a paperless cockpit is an example of such an artifact changing the
substance of work. However, little attention has been given to the challenges the iPad introduces in piloting and in the cockpit. This thesis studied use of the iPad and the iPad as agent in the cockpit by combining an activity theoretical approach with a joint... (More)
In aviation, pilots engage in safety critical activities in the cockpit to guarantee a safe flight. Throughout history these activities have been transformed by introducing new artifacts in the cockpit, such as rules and technology, changing thereby the way in which pilots try to achieve safe flight outcomes. The recent introduction of the iPad in the cockpit of airlines, as part of the process of developing a paperless cockpit is an example of such an artifact changing the
substance of work. However, little attention has been given to the challenges the iPad introduces in piloting and in the cockpit. This thesis studied use of the iPad and the iPad as agent in the cockpit by combining an activity theoretical approach with a joint cognitive systems perspective. The iPad was found to be a rather fluid cognitive agent in the cockpit that needs to be attended to by the pilots. The iPad was found to require more attendance than expected by pilots, and to propagate wrong data into the cockpit ecology. The introduction of the iPad in the cockpit, in short, was of a transformative nature, as its introduction changed
piloting and even the functioning of the whole cockpit ecology, not just for the good. The iPad, despite its being a state of the art artifact, lacks qualities that are necessary to be a team player and can best be conceptualized as a piece of unruly technology. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
El-Hage, Elie LU
supervisor
organization
course
FLMU16 20232
year
type
H1 - Master's Degree (One Year)
subject
keywords
JCS, Activity Theory, Human-Artifact Model, iPad, new technology, breakdowns, artifact analysis, FLMU06
language
English
id
9172509
date added to LUP
2024-08-26 11:32:37
date last changed
2024-08-26 11:32:37
@misc{9172509,
  abstract     = {{In aviation, pilots engage in safety critical activities in the cockpit to guarantee a safe flight. Throughout history these activities have been transformed by introducing new artifacts in the cockpit, such as rules and technology, changing thereby the way in which pilots try to achieve safe flight outcomes. The recent introduction of the iPad in the cockpit of airlines, as part of the process of developing a paperless cockpit is an example of such an artifact changing the
substance of work. However, little attention has been given to the challenges the iPad introduces in piloting and in the cockpit. This thesis studied use of the iPad and the iPad as agent in the cockpit by combining an activity theoretical approach with a joint cognitive systems perspective. The iPad was found to be a rather fluid cognitive agent in the cockpit that needs to be attended to by the pilots. The iPad was found to require more attendance than expected by pilots, and to propagate wrong data into the cockpit ecology. The introduction of the iPad in the cockpit, in short, was of a transformative nature, as its introduction changed
piloting and even the functioning of the whole cockpit ecology, not just for the good. The iPad, despite its being a state of the art artifact, lacks qualities that are necessary to be a team player and can best be conceptualized as a piece of unruly technology.}},
  author       = {{El-Hage, Elie}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{The 21st Century Cockpit: iPad Related Activities and the Affected Cockpit JCS}},
  year         = {{2024}},
}