The proposals seem to me to add complexity and clutter rather than reduce it. The basic piloting job is to scan the instruments. In a modern jet airliner, the various modes on the FMA and their interactions with flight parameters also must be understood, and the influence of each mode and mode change on the primary flight parameters must be constantly checked and understood.
For example; one must always understand who or what is controlling aircraft speed, and how this is being achieved. The pilot must scan the speed tape and the trend arrow often and be in no doubt about which system is controlling speed. So the primary visual check must be to the speed tape and trend arrow. If a green box is drawn around the speed, then I can see problems in that the tired/lazy/incompetant pilot will get used to just glancing to see if the green box is present without actually reading the speed and trend. If pilots get used to this, it will cause serious problems in the event of system failures and those times when manual flight is required.
Another example is the heading demonstration. If a pilot has to have a green box drawn around the heading bug to know which parameter "heading" will affect, then there is little hope for them.
If the FMA changes, a pilot must be able to assimilate the PFD themselves and know which parameter on the PFD the FMA change will affect, because systems knowledge and an understanding of how each system affects which PFD parameter is also important. The danger here is that pilots might get used to just checking to see three green boxes on the PFD without knowing or understanding which modes the aircraft systems are in.
No disrespect to the OP, but I am not sure that this is a useful advance to piloting.
(I am an Airbus pilot and I have to say that the Boeing FMA seems confusing compared to the Airbus one, but of course that is probably just because I am unfamiliar with it.)
Last edited by Uplinker; 15th Nov 2016 at 10:58.