Human Machine Interface – Understanding The Concept In Simple Terms

Most non-techies will sound completely perplexed at the mention of terms like HMI. In fact, I bet your reaction will be something like ‘Human Inter-what’? Don’t you already interact or interface with machines? How else will you be running any of them?

Its a valid question, trust me..

But then why are software engineers and developers constantly working on new and improved ways of getting machines to do your bidding? Too much sci-fi and your non-techie mind will be swimming in a pool of confusion. Allow me to explain what exactly human machine interface is and how exactly does it affect our way of life.

HMI basically provides a mechanism with which you can manipulate or provide inputs to a system or device like a computer. It is basically a layer between the person interacting with the machine and the machine itself. A simple example can be the internet – the HMI allows users to input the information their need and the web then displays the concerned web pages on the computer or other web browser enabled devices. Applications are varied - from medical prostheses, such as cochlear implants, to computer-human interactions to the operation of vehicular Global Positioning System (GPS) devices.

The public is constantly demanding better formats to interact with the technology around them. The intention is to make it easier to control the environment around them. With machines finding their way into simple everyday tasks, it has become increasingly necessary to create convenient and easy mechanisms to help them use and operate this technology. Human Machine Interface is therefore being geared towards usage and utility for the common layman, rather than well trained techies. The use of commands and operation sequences is being done away with and intuitive navigations systems are being brought to the fore. The idea is to totally abolish the need for specialist orientation and training for operating the device. It should be such that even a first time user should be able to run operations on it.

The latest and most potent form of HMI that has been surfacing in the past decade is touch technology. Everything from smartphones to computers to powerful industrial operating systems feature this technology. Not only is it simple to follow and use, it makes running programs and operations faster, easier and more efficient. Designers of HMI technologies take important precautions to ensure a constant and intuitive navigation flow to ensure the entire operations are available at the user’s fingertips.

Human interaction with machines has come a long way from where it once began. It once used to be a string of commands that needed to be memorised by programmers and operations personnel – words that would genuinely seem like gibberish to most people. It required years worth of training to actually become experts at controlling or operating any device. But today, with modern HMI, machines use universal gestures and simple to understand navigation and command flows to make it all happen.

If you need to understand more about human machine interface, ComfileTech.com is the website you should be visiting.

About The Author

Timothy Parker is a computing technology expert who believes touchscreen monitors and HMI to be the epitome of convenience and versatility. He recommends ComfileTech.com as the name to bank upon for all your touch panel PC requirements.