It would be nice if that panel does not vanish after 5 seconds of inactivity. My girlfriend tried the demo and I was watching her and a few times while she looked at that panel without touching it is vanished just when she was about to dial a knob so she had to reclick it.
I think once the panel appear it should remain until you click anywhere else but the panel. I don't know if later in the game such similar behavior should be taken into consideration.
Thanks