Pilot's Guide to Avionics 2012-2013 - 44

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TOUCHSCREEN MANIA
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improve the human interface. “Technology should solve a problem or serve a purpose; the worst reason to design something is because you can,” Stone said. “The best reason is because they fulfill a need. Can we use technology to solve the problem of making the product friendly to use?” The breadth and depth of acceptance by avionics makers makes the answer obvious. “It’s discoverable – people can pick it up and start using it without a lot of instruction,” Stone said. “This is the genesis of how we see touchscreen and adaptive display that changes the technology to solve the problem.” That said, the touchscreen isn’t seen as the best solution for all conditions. According to Avidyne president Dan Schwinn, “Touchscreen by itself does not necessarily result in an easyto-use interface. For our first touchscreen systems, we’ve chosen to use a multi-mode interface that includes touch as well as dedicated knobs and buttons. Given the current state of the art in touchscreen technology, it’s our belief that pilots will find this much more of an improvement on current avionics than an interface that requires you to use touch under all flying conditions and circumstances.” Aspen and Honeywell followed the same tack, while Garmin has sought to minimize buttons and knobs in favor of more touch-tap controlling. “For pilots flying in choppy and turbulent air, it’s nice to have a knob to anchor your hand, and there’s something comforting about the positive feedback from the detent of a mechanical switch,” Schwinn said. “But, as you can see with our IFD540, augmenting the user interface with a touchscreen adds new capabilities like flight plan ‘rubberband’ editing, while
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making many other tasks, such as map panning and frequency selection, even easier. Plus, the combination of knobs, buttons and touch gives pilots the choice, which they really seem to appreciate.” The KSN 770 also blends a touchsensitive display with an array of control buttons and knobs, allowing the pilot to use the best interface for the function and the moment. “Flight conditions change, ATC demands change, weather conditions change…the touchscreen is really the ideal interface for making changes,” Hayden said. “But, like any other interface, it has its pros and cons. In smooth conditions, the touchscreen is the easiest. As conditions get rougher, the touchscreen may be next to impossible, so the buttons are there to anchor the control interface. It’s good for the pilot to have multiple ways to interact with the device.” Aspen also is embracing touchcontrol technology through devices employed in its Connected Panel system – a box which allows wireless connectivity between devices and avionics working with the Evolution screen systems. According to the company, by launching its Connected network of aviation-specific hardware and software applications, the Connected Panel architecture will allow pilots to bridge the gap between smart devices, such as the iPad, and panelmounted avionics to allow direct input of flight plans, for example, from one of the smart devices directly into a connected GPS navigator, like Honeywell’s KSN 770. “In addition to the KSN 770 integration, all or part of Connected Panel functionality will be available for other legacy GPS navigators, depending upon that GPS’s ability to transmit and receive data,” Hayden said. Regardless of how the avionContinued on page 46…

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Pilot's Guide to Avionics 2012-2013

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Pilot's Guide to Avionics 2012-2013