Task Analysis for Improving Training of Construction Equipment Operators

Abstract

We previously conducted a preliminary analysis of the tasks performed by operators of hydraulic excavators, where the excavator is stationary and the implement is controlled by joysticks operated with the left and right hands. In the present paper, we put forward a detailed comparative analysis of the tasks for a hydraulic excavator and those for a wheel loader, of which operation of the latter requires simultaneous coordination of vehicular driving and implement operation whereas operation of the former does not. These analyses, based on Hierarchical Task Analysis (HTA), illustrate the complexity of equipment operation and distinguish the skills to be acquired for each machine. By employing HTA to decompose complex tasks into a hierarchy of goals and sub-goals, a better direction may be devised for how trainees spend their practice time for both the simulator and real equipment training phases. Future phases of this research will include input from experienced operators and trainers and extension of the HTA analysis to finer levels of description, including cognitive tasks.