What is your role in the EPIIC project?

In the EPIIC project, I had a dual and pivotal role. I work as the Human Factors Coordinator for Airbus DS SAU, ensuring that all Human Factors-related activities from our side were satisfactorily planned and executed. Simultaneously, I held the position of Work Package 9 (WP9) leader, overseeing its strategic direction and deliverables. Beyond these primary responsibilities, I also actively contributed and participated in other work packages, performing diverse activities across the different tasks of the EPIIC project to support its main objectives.

Can you describe your main responsibilities and tasks?

My responsibilities within EPIIC project were related to my role. As the Human Factors Coordinator for Airbus DS SAU, my main task was to strategically manage and oversee all Human Factors activities undertaken by Airbus DS SAU within the project. This involved defining requirements, guiding design decisions related to HMI and ensuring that our contributions are aligned with the EPIIC Human Factors goals. 

In my role as WP9 leader, I was responsible for coordinating all tasks and efforts within this work package among every involved partner. WP9 is particularly focused on the crucial area of studying, analyzing, and developing innovative interaction modalities within the cockpit of a fighter aircraft. This includes exploring cutting-edge technologies and methodologies to enhance pilot effectiveness and reduce workload in high-stress environments. My key tasks involved facilitating collaboration, managing timelines, ensuring quality deliverables and ultimately driving the successful achievement of WP9 ambitious objectives.

How does your work contribute to the overall goals of the EPIIC project?

My work contributes to the EPIIC project goal of developing and assessing the feasibility of several innovative technologies for future fighter aircraft. We are actively studying and analyzing innovative concepts such as Virtual Assistant, Adaptive Human-Machine Interfaces (AHMI) and advanced control modalities like gestures, voice commands or eye-tracking. 

Our contribution is holistic, covering the entire process from initial operational and capability analysis to the final evaluation of HMI concepts. This involves a detailed task analysis, requirements gathering and the evaluation of these HMI concepts through demonstrations with actual pilots. By assessing these technologies from a Human Factors perspective, we ensure that they are not only technologically adequate but also properly integrated, intuitive and enhance the pilot effectiveness and safety in the highly demanding environment of a future combat aircraft.

What do you find most exciting about working on the EPIIC project?

What I find most exciting about the EPIIC project is precisely the opportunity to undertake this complete end-to-end development process within the context of a future fighter missions and operational environment. It is incredibly stimulating to start from the operational and task analysis, identifying and extracting HMI requirements that are derived by the demands of future air combat. 

Applying our Human Factors knowledge and established processes from conceptualization to the evaluation of tangible HMI concepts, is uniquely rewarding. It allows us to push the boundaries of current HMI principles and influence the design of next-generation fighter cockpit, ensuring they are human-centric and optimized for performance."

What has been the most challenging aspect of your work on this project?

Certainly, the most challenging aspect of my work on this project has been the Human Factors analysis of the future operational context. This is a largely unexplored environment, making it a significant challenge to accurately identify the specific needs, missions and capabilities that will apply to a future fighter. 

Extracting these insights and then conducting a comprehensive analysis of the tasks performed within a future cockpit has required a high degree of innovative thinking. It is about envisioning scenarios that don not yet exist and deriving specific Human Factors requirements from those conceptual foundations, which has truly challenged our current processes and way of working.

Can you share a significant milestone or achievement your team has reached so far?

Without a doubt, a significant milestone for our team, particularly within WP9, has been the successful execution of our innovative interaction modality demonstrations. These demos were crucial as they allowed us to integrate various cutting-edge interaction concepts – such as those involving gestures, voice, and eye-tracking – into an operational environment representative of the future missions and use cases analyzed throughout the EPIIC project. 

What made these demonstrations truly useful was the ability to perform Human Factors evaluations with actual fighter pilots serving as test subjects. The feedback and results we gathered were not only extremely useful and interesting for refining our concepts, but also satisfactory, validating the potential of these new interaction paradigms. This achievement represents a critical step forward in validating our research and bringing these advanced cockpit concepts closer to reality.

What have you learned during your time working on EPIIC?

Working on EPIIC has been an incredibly enriching experience, and I have learned a lot improving my knowledge and background. Taking into account the project innovative and challenging nature, it has provided us a unique opportunity to research into many aspects encompassing the development of a future combat aircraft and the different innovative technologies being explored. 

I have obtained deeper insights into the intricate process of analyzing future missions and capabilities, understanding the nuances of how these will evolve and shape the future fighter cockpit. Furthermore, I have gained hands-on experience with the practical challenges associated with developing of these advanced technologies, from conceptualization to integration. This complete experience has significantly broadened my perspective on pioneering aerospace development.

How has this project influenced your professional development?

The EPIIC project has profoundly influenced my professional development, significantly enhancing both my knowledge and practical experience. On one hand, I have gained invaluable expertise in the new processes we are actively developing within EPIIC, particularly those related to human-machine interaction in advanced aerospace systems. This experience has allowed me to refine my understanding of new methodologies and approaches in Human Factors engineering. 

On the other hand, my knowledge of future combat aircraft operations has been greatly expanded. I have been able to immerse myself in the complexities of anticipated missions and operational environments, gaining critical foresight. Simultaneously, I have acquired experience of the new technologies being developed for implementation in these future platforms. This combination of process innovation and technological insight has allowed me growth as Human Factors specialist.

What do you enjoy doing in your free time?

On a more personal note, away from the project, what I value most is spending quality time with my family, enjoying all sorts of activities together. I also enjoy staying active through sports, exploring new places through travel, immersing myself in cinema, and relaxing with a good book. These personal pursuits help me maintain a balanced perspective and bring renewed energy to my professional daily work.

Share a fun fact about yourself that your colleagues might not know:

I have a strong passion for automobilism and motorcycling, and genuinely enjoy everything associated with them. This includes following motorsports as a spectator, but also the more personal pleasure of driving my car and riding my motorcycle on weekends. Beyond the adventure of driving and riding, I am particularly keen on understanding the technical aspects of these vehicles. I love delving into how they are designed, how different components work together and exploring the mechanics that make them perform. It is a blend of adrenaline and intellectual curiosity that I find incredibly engaging.

Is there anything else you would like to share about your experience with the EPIIC project?:

"To conclude, I would like to emphasize that working on the EPIIC project has been an incredibly rewarding and transformative experience. It is not every day that you get to contribute to such a forward-looking and impactful initiative, especially one that is contributing to shape future of aviation from a Human Factors perspective. The collaborative spirit among all the partners, the dedication to innovation and the shared vision for enhancing pilot performance have made this project truly special.