Predicting the accuracy of visual search performance in the structural inspection of aircraft

The predominant tasks in aircraft inspection are those that require visual search. Speed and accuracy characterize visual search tasks. Since the trade-off between speed and accuracy directly affects the safety, dependability acid affordability of air transportation, there is considerable motivation to express this relationship in quantitative terms. Although models of this trade-off have been previously proposed for various search tasks, the applicability of these models to the tasks typically required of aircraft inspectors is limited. Thus new models of visual search that typify aircraft inspection are adopted here in order to examine the explicit trade-off between speed and accuracy in this environment. Relevance to industry The models adopted here, specifically applicable to aircraft inspection, consider the trade-off between speed and accuracy - a trade-off that ultimately affects the affordability, dependability, and safety (and therefore public perception of) air travel - in quantitative terms. These models also define the extent to which accuracy can be improved. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.