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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2023

Factors Influencing Adoption of Pooled Rideshare An Explorative Study on User-Centered Design and Services

The rise of real-time information communication through smartphones and wireless networks enabled the growth of ridesharing services. While personal rideshare services (individuals ride alone or with people they know) initially dominated the market, the popularity of pooled ridesharing (individuals share rides with strangers) has grown globally. However, pooled rideshare remains less common in the U.S., where personal vehicle usage is still the norm. Vehicle design and rideshare services may need to be tailored to user preferences to increase pooled rideshare adoption. A national U.S. survey ( N = 5,385) used exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses to identify four key factors influencing riders’ willingness to consider pooled rideshare: comfort/ease of use, convenience, vehicle technology/accessibility, and passenger safety. Understanding and implementing these user-centered design principles and service-related factors may be critical for increasing the future use of pooled rideshare services

Gangadharaiah, Rakesh↗
DOE OSTI2020

A User-Centered Design Study in Scientific Visualization Targeting Domain Experts

The development of usable visualization solutions is essential for ensuring both their adoption and effectiveness. User-centered design principles, which involve users throughout the entire development process, have been shown to be effective in numerous information visualization endeavors. We describe how we applied these principles in scientific visualization over a two year collaboration to develop a hybrid in situ/post hoc solution tailored towards combustion researcher needs. Lastly, we examine the importance of user-centered design and lessons learned over the design process in an effort to aid others seeking to develop effective scientific visualization solutions.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗
DOE OSTI2024

Human readiness levels and Human Views as tools for user-centered design

The Human Readiness Level (HRL) scale is a simple nine-level scale that brings structure and consistency to the real-world application of user-centered design. It enables multidisciplinary consideration of human-focused elements during the system development process. Use of the standardized set of questions comprising the HRL scale results in a single human readiness number that communicates system readiness for human use. The Human Views (HVs) are part of an architecture framework that provides a repository for human-focused system information that can be used during system development to support the evaluation of HRL levels. Here, this paper illustrates how HRLs and HVs can be used in combination to support user-centered design processes. A real-world example for a U.S. Army software modernization program is described to demonstrate application of HRLs and HVs in the context of user-centered design.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2023

A User-Centered Design Exploration of Factors That Influence the Rideshare Experience

The rise of real-time information communication through smartphones and wireless networks enabled the growth of ridesharing services. While personal rideshare services (individuals riding alone or with acquaintances) initially dominated the market, the popularity of pooled ridesharing (individuals sharing rides with people they do not know) has grown globally. However, pooled ridesharing remains less common in the U.S., where personal vehicle usage is still the norm. Vehicle design and rideshare services may need to be tailored to user preferences to increase pooled rideshare adoption. Based on a large, national U.S. survey (N = 5385), the results of exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses suggested that four key factors influence riders’ willingness to consider pooled ridesharing: comfort/ease of use, convenience, vehicle technology/accessibility, and passenger safety. A binomial logistic regression was conducted to determine how the four factors influence one’s willingness to consider pooled ridesharing. The two factors that positively influence riders’ willingness to consider pooled ridesharing are vehicle technology/accessibility (B = 1.10) and convenience (B = 0.94), while lack of passenger safety (B = –0.63) and comfort/ease of use (B = –0.17) are pooled ridesharing deterrents. Understanding user-centered design and service factors are critical to increase the use of pooled ridesharing services in the future.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗
DOE OSTI2024

User-Centered Software Design in the All Hazards Analysis Application

To design good software, you must always keep the end user in mind. Some benefits of incorporating the user-centered design process include saving users time and effort and helping them to utilize all capabilites of an application. In my work on the All Hazards Analysis (AHA) application, I employed principles of user-centered design to make the application easier for new users to navigate. This poster describes user-centered software design in general and showcases some of my user-centered design work on the AHA application.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2025

Heuristic Evaluation Methods Applied to a Predictive Maintenance Chatbot

The need for an accessible iterative approach for evaluating prospective artificial intelligence (AI)/ML based technologies in the nuclear industry is needed, given the nature of algorithms and rapid advancements. This paper explores existing heuristic design principles for user-centered design and evaluates them based on their relevancy and usefulness for evaluating AI/ ML based technologies. Researchers at the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) have developed a machine learning software application called VIsualization for PrEdictive maintenance Recommendation (VIPER), which is used to help users understand and engage with the tool to learn more about work orders, data used, predictive maintenance, and machine learning (ML) algorithms. Early user research studies used to access VIPER’s technology readiness level have occurred; however, there is room for further improvement of the software through heuristic evaluations along with other methods and user testing. This work describes the applicability of heuristic evaluation methods and cognitive walkthroughs to help ensure human readiness for prospective AI/ ML based applications, using VIPER as a candidate use case. This work supports industry in ensuring that prospective AI/ML based technologies are usable and useful for plant personnel at nuclear power plants, ultimately leading to their safe, reliable, and efficient use.

99 - GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS↗
DOE OSTI2025

Heuristic Evaluation Methods Applied to a Predictive Maintenance Chatbot

The need for an accessible iterative approach for evaluating prospective artificial intelligence (AI)/ML based technologies in the nuclear industry is needed, given the nature of algorithms and rapid advancements. This paper explores existing heuristic design principles for user-centered design and evaluates them based on their relevancy and usefulness for evaluating AI/ ML based technologies. Researchers at the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) have developed a machine learning software application called VIsualization for PrEdictive maintenance Recommendation (VIPER), which is used to help users understand and engage with the tool to learn more about work orders, data used, predictive maintenance, and machine learning (ML) algorithms. Early user research studies used to access VIPER?s technology readiness level have occurred; however, there is room for further improvement of the software through heuristic evaluations along with other methods and user testing. This work describes the applicability of heuristic evaluation methods and cognitive walkthroughs to help ensure human readiness for prospective AI/ ML based applications, using VIPER as a candidate use case. This work supports industry in ensuring that prospective AI/ML based technologies are usable and useful for plant personnel at nuclear power plants, ultimately leading to their safe, reliable, and efficient use. PowerPoint for conference that was reviewed in PRS and LRS PRS/CON-25-05379 and INL/CON-25-82946

99 - GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS↗
DOE OSTI2026

PowerAnalytics.jl: User-Centric Power Systems Analysis in Julia

The National Laboratory of the Rockies recently released version 1 of PowerAnalytics.jl, an analysis module for the outputs of its popular open-source electrical power systems modeling platform Sienna. It features an extensible framework - based on the flexible selecting of components, the execution of arbitrary metrics on them, and a familiar DataFrames-based output interface with embedded metadata - to process results in the Sienna style while keeping the interface as simple as possible for non-Julia experts. Here, I describe the package and where it fits into the Sienna ecosystem, how I harnessed user-centered design and Julia features to achieve beginner friendliness without sacrificing performance and expressibility, and what lessons might be drawn from the package's design and implementation.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗
DOE OSTI2022

A Prospective Design Method for Nuclear Power: The Evaluation, Requirements, and Goals Outline for Nuclear (ERGON) Method

Human factors researchers at Idaho National Laboratory (INL) have worked on projects spanning control room modernization, operator support systems, visualization design, and novel system creation. These projects demonstrated the need for an explicit design method for nuclear power. Human factors teams found a high standard in the Human Factors Engineering Program Review Model (NUREG-0711) and needed a design methodology which could be successful in gaining approval. Previous work has been synthesized as the Evaluation, Requirements, and Goals Outline for Nuclear (ERGON) method here. Design tasks are broken into four phases: Context and Orientation, Human Factors Review, Prototyping and Evaluation, Iteration and Improvement. ERGON is intended as a flexible and direct design method for many applications in nuclear power. ERGON has been vetted through collaborative research and development with nuclear utilities and as such, the ERGON method can assist utilities to achieve approval from a NUREG-0711 summative evaluation for HSI implementations.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2024

Thinking Beyond the Default User: The Impact of Gender, Stereotypes, and Modality on Interpretation of User Needs

Throughout the mechanical design process, designers, the majority of whom are men, often fail to consider the needs of women, resulting in consequences ranging from inconvenience to increased risk of serious injury or death. Although these biases are well studied in other fields of research, the mechanical design field lacks formal investigation into this phenomenon. In this study, engineering students (n = 301) took a survey in which they read a Persona describing a student makerspace user and a Walkthrough describing the user’s interaction with the makerspace while completing a project. During the Walkthrough, the user encountered various obstacles or Pain Points. Participants were asked to recall and evaluate the Pain Points that the user encountered and then evaluated their perceptions of the makerspace and user. Furthermore, the independent variables under investigation were the gender of the user Persona (woman, gender-neutral, or man), the Walkthrough room case (crafting or woodworking makerspace), and the modality of the Persona and Walkthrough (text- or audio-based). Results showed that participants from the Text-based modality were better able to recall Pain Points compared to participants from the Audio-based modality. Pain Points were assessed as more severe when they impacted women users, potentially stemming from protective paternalism. In addition to finding that the gender of a user impacted the way a task environment was perceived, results confirmed the presence of androcentrism, or “default man” assumptions, in the way designers view end users of unknown gender. Promisingly, providing user Persona information in an audio modality significantly reduced this bias compared to text-based modalities, indicating that providing richer detail in user personas has the capability to reduce gender bias in designers.

cognitive-based design↗
DOE OSTI2025

Automating ridehailing services would reduce pooling, especially among women

Here, this study investigates how autonomous vehicles (AVs) could transform pooled (shared) ridehailing services, focusing on the impacts of fare reductions, the absence of drivers/staff, and psychological attributes such as trust in other passengers and privacy concerns. We distinguish between the automation of driving tasks and the removal of human driver/staff from the vehicle, providing novel insights into the factors influencing AV ridehailing adoption. Using a national survey with stated preference (SP) choice experiments and psychometric questions, we analyze the complex interactions of ridehailing fare, pooled ridehailing service quality, and latent attitudes on ridehailing choices. Our findings suggest that the elimination of drivers/staff from fully autonomous ridehailing could lead to a shift from pooled to solo rides, particularly among female travelers who may have greater concerns about trust and safety in unstaffed AVs. This study highlights the importance of addressing trust and comfort beyond fare discounts to ensure the inclusivity and widespread adoption of pooled AV ridehailing. These insights underscore the need for ridehailing providers and policymakers to prioritize trust-building measures, user-centered AV design that offers greater privacy, and dynamic pricing strategies, to ensure inclusive and widespread adoption of pooled AV services.

Autonomous vehicle↗
DOE OSTI2022

User-Focused Tools to Enhance IT/OT Cyber Resilience within the Power Grid

The power grid is undergoing several changes that are increasing its complexity as nexuses between electric-gas, transmission-distribution, and energy-communications continue to become increasingly critical. This system is heavily dependent on communication infrastructure and controls, and it relies on humans in operational technology (OT) and information technology (IT) roles to manage the increasing breadth, depth, and speed of data. Many technical challenges have presented themselves and will need to be addressed to provide reliable grid operations. With increased reliance on distributed controls and communication infrastructure, cybersecurity becomes an inherent requirement. When considering current cyber-physical security solutions for the power grid, one can notice a clear divide between information technology and operation technology networks. However, in real-life applications, these networks are interdependent. This work presents results of interviews with key utility cybersecurity personnel, analyzes the results, and makes recommendations towards solution of existing technical and operational challenges realized. Existing workflows are presented, wireframe interviews are discussed, and tool requirements are described. The existence of easy-to-implement solutions, based on existing energy management systems, highlight the potential for real-life applications.

cybersecurity, resilience, user-centered design, p↗
DOE OSTI2020

Understanding Interactive and Reproducible Computing With Jupyter Tools at Facilities

Increasingly Jupyter tools are being adopted and incorporated into High Performance Computing (HPC) and scientific user facilities. Adopting Jupyter tools enables more interactive and reproducible computational work at facilities across data life cycles. As the volume, variety, and scope of data grow, scientists need to be able to analyze and share results in user friendly ways. Human-centered research highlights design challenges around computational notebooks, and our qualitative user study shifts focus to better characterize how Jupyter tools are being used in HPC and science user facilities today. We conducted twenty-nine interviews, and obtained 103 survey responses from NERSC Jupyter users, to better understand the increasing role of interactive computing tools in DOE sponsored scientific work. We examine a range of issues that emerge using and supporting Jupyter in HPC ecosystems, including: how Jupyter is being used by scientists in HPC and user facility ecosystems; how facilities are purposefully supporting Jupyter in their ecosystems; feedback NERSC users have about the facility’s deployment, and, discuss features NERSC indicated would be helpful. We offer a variety of takeaways for staff supporting Jupyter at facilities, Project Jupyter and related open source communities, and funding agencies supporting interactive computing work.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗
DOE OSTI2025

Are humans still necessary? Expanding the discussion

The rise of automation, artificial intelligence (AI), and autonomous systems raises important questions about the future role of humans and the field of human factors/ergonomics in workplaces. This paper builds on Dr. Peter Hancock’s 2023 ‘Are Humans Still Necessary?’ article published in the Ergonomics journal. Using a multi-method approach that included a debate, opinion polling, roundtable discussions, and AI queries, the current effort examined the necessity of human involvement in future work environments. Debate team members presented arguments for and against the need for human workers, considering human factors, technology, and socioeconomic factors. Observations indicate that while AI may handle routine tasks, humans will likely remain essential for complex decision making, creativity, and ethical considerations. The paper advocates for viewing workplace dynamics as collaborative human-AI partnerships rather than competition, highlighting the need for a transdisciplinary approach in which human factors/ergonomics professionals play a vital role in enhancing these relationships.

99 - GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS↗
DOE OSTI2025

Bridging the Gap Between Modern UX Design and Particle Accelerator Control Room Interfaces

Accelerator control systems often represent relatively complex and safety-sensitive human-machine interfaces within process control industries. These systems are technically robust and reflect the cumulative integration of solutions built and adapted across decades. One of the regular, unfortunate casualties of provisional accelerator control system updates is their human-system interfaces (HSIs) which often lag behind modern usability and design standards. An additional challenge is that although there is a multitude of established human factors (HF), and user experience (UX) principles for everyday digital applications, there are very few (if any) established principles for complex and safety-critical applications for an accelerator. This paper argues for the importance of established HF and UX principles (herein referred to as human-centered design principles) into the development of accelerator HSIs, emphasizing the need for clarity, consistency, responsiveness, and cognitive accessibility. Drawing from HF/UX best practices and human-centered design, this paper discusses how these approaches can enhance operator performance, reduce human error, and improve accelerator personnel collaboration. Case studies from Accelerator Control Operations Research Network (ACORN) at Fermilab are explored to demonstrate how interfaces built with human-centered design principles can scale with system complexity while remaining intuitive and efficient for diverse user roles including operators, machine experts, and engineers. By bridging the gap between traditional control system design and modern human-centered design methods, this paper provides a roadmap for evolving accelerator HSIs into more usable, maintainable, and effective tools.

Hill, Rachael [Idaho Natl. Lab.]↗
DOE OSTI2026

Electromagnetic Transient Modeling of Large Data Centers for Grid-Level Studies

The magnitude and complexity of electricity usage patterns from large data centers are having significant impacts on the operation and dynamics of the power grid; grid operators and planners require a range of specialized data center models to properly evaluate these impacts and specify technical solutions as needed. Towards addressing this need, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) has developed a library of electromagnetic transient (EMT) models for grid-level studies of data centers called the data center model library (DML). This report describes how the DML was created and how it may properly be used. The models present in the DML are generic models; subject matter expertise and additional technical data are needed to modify these models before they can represent any real data center. However, they will significantly reduce the level of effort required to develop site-specific models and can serve as a common starting point to guide industry towards a more refined consensus. Most of the models within DML are dedicated to representing the power electronics interfaces commonly used in modern data centers, such as double-conversion uninterruptible power supplies and single-phase power factor correction converters. These models are intended for use in grid-level studies and are a simplified aggregation of many small components. That said, background material on the physical and electrical design of large data centers is provided as companion material so that users can be aware of many of the details which have been omitted or streamlined as a matter of practical necessity. Additionally, guidance on the application of EMT analysis for data center interconnection studies is provided, which aids users in identifying when the DML is necessary and what sort of additional model development may be necessary for conducting real-world studies.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗