Emirates, Seeing Machines pave way for enhanced safety

Emirates has been working with Seeing Machines, an industry leader in computer vision-based technologies, to use advanced gaze tracking technology to better understand how pilots interact and monitor instruments during certain identified real-time procedures that could potentially pose safety risks. The findings will enable Emirates to enhance training for flight deck crew to prepare for a wide range of scenarios in the air.

Based in Australia, Seeing Machines develops advanced, high precision technology that enables machines to see, understand and assist people. The company’s head and eye tracking technology has already been used to improve safety across a number of industries including mining, road and rail transport.

Emirates is cooperating with Seeing Machines to use non-intrusive eye and head-tracking technology to collect gaze data from a sample of Emirates line pilots, whilst flying standard training scenarios in Emirates flight simulators. The decision to use actual training environments and scenarios was made to enhance the quality of the data collected. This factual data could then be analysed and fed back into the process, leading to better training and safer operations.

Emirates has always been at the forefront of innovation and safety in the aviation industry and the partnership with Seeing Machines allows it to participate in the early stages of developing real-world applications that can add value to flight training and lead to safer flight operations not just for Emirates but for the global aviation industry.

For Seeing Machines, working with Emirates has meant access to insights from Emirates’ pilots and their extensive knowledge operating a modern 263- strong fleet of Airbus A380 and Boeing 777 aircraft across a global network of over 155 destinations in six continents. The engagement with Emirates also helps Seeing Machines to leverage findings in applications across the other industries where it operates.