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MAN–THE FOCUS OF THE TRAINING SYSTEM

INTRODUCTION TO THE CONFERENCE

Dr. Hanns H. Wolff

Technical Director, Naval Training Device Center and Conference General Chairman

We at the Naval Training Equipment Center are very grateful that the Chief of Naval Education and Training authorized this Sixth NAVTRAEQUIPCEN/Industry Conference since it brings the Training Equipment Industry and the Naval Training Equipment Center together to further mutual understanding and interests.  As in past conferences, our aim is to promote the cooperation between the NAVTRAEQUIPCEN and Industry and exchange ideas on new training simulation technology.  With the goal of further improving military training programs, we will present to Industry the very significant changes that have occurred since our last conference and, last but not least, we will hear Industry’s problems in their relation to the NAVTRAEQUIPCEN.

As you remember, the Naval Training Equipment Center transferred from the Command of the chief of Naval Material to that of the chief of Naval Training, now the chief of Naval Education and Training, the very day our last conference started.  Since then we have gone through major reorganizations and reorientation.  To a large extent this has been due to the fact that in July 1972 the Naval Training Support command was established and became the direct Command of the Naval Training Equipment Center and that the Naval Training Support Command and other of its field activities meanwhile assumed several functions that had been previously the responsibility of the Naval Training Equipment Center.

The dust, I think, has by now sufficiently settled and we can give you an insight into our new modus operandi, which was naturally an impact on Industry’s interfacing with the NAVTRAEQUIPCEN.  It is therefore one of the goals of the conference to bring Industry up to speed on the new NAVTRAEQUIPCEN/Industry interface.

Another fact we like to get across to Industry is the steady trend to increase the NAVTRAEQUIPCEN’s responsibilities more and more beyond the plain acquisition of training devices.  For the NAVTRAEQUIPCEN is now involved in the whole training process, especially the optimization of the training cost for a large sector of a career-training program using the most advanced instructional technology.

For this purpose, we have to look at a larger training time span and develop and select that training methodology that provides us with the trained man under optimization of training cost and time, considering, of course, simultaneously all other restraining parameters.

Advances in training device technology play a major role in obtaining a better trained man, and this can be and have to be achieved even at an overall training cost reduction.

Latest training device technology in the form of adaptive systems has individualized the training syllabus and made it possible at the same time to increase the instructor’s effectiveness multifold.  Thus, we shortened simultaneously the training time required and achieved a more proficient Naval officer and enlisted man.

On the other hand there are many untouched or only barely touched areas that require our attention and effort.  For example, we have to replace more training that is presently conducted in the operational environment with training in training devices and equipment, an effort that is often limited by the present state-of-the art in training device technology.

Foremost among the unresolved technological problem is the wide-angle visual environment display problem that has so far not yet found a satisfactory economic solution.  Though some progress has been made, especially in the computer-generated image area, much more effort is required in the wide-angle visual environment display area.  For here major progress will widen the application of synthetic training and improve the training economy significantly.

What we are looking for are wide-angle visual displays for all kinds of weather conditions, for day and for night operation for the purposes of training takeoff and landing on carrier and on shore facilities, for training traffic pattern and approach flying, for formation and acrobatic flying, for weapons delivery both air-to-ground and air-to-air; in short, for all aviation exercises that demand the visual observation of the environment.  We are, of course, aware of the fact that such a diversity of requirements cannot be met in a single system in the near future unless a major breakthrough in the state-of-the-art occurs.

Another area of technology that deserves an all-out effort is the software problem for our training device computer systems.  For several years we have hoped that it would be possible to develop a special training device computer language that would reduce the cost of programming and reprogramming of training device computers–a language that would enable a large group of people without extensive training to undertake programming effectively.  It seems though that the progress in the art of computer technology is always running ahead of the software methodology.  For example, during the last few years we have had a rapid increase in the application of minicomputers and an increased appreciation of the values of hybrid computer systems, both areas that still require highly skilled specialized personnel for optimal programming.

This paper is available on the I/ITSEC Compendium CD-ROM.

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SYSTEMS APPROACH TO SIMULATOR TRAINING FACT OR FANTASY

Brian A. Drissell

Program Development Manager

United Air Lines, Flight Training Center

Over the past few years, there have been major advances in airplane simulator design, in fidelity improvement, programming power, motion and visual systems, and advanced training features.   The airlines, working closely with the FAA and the manufacturers, have been able to make use of these improvements by training and checking more than ever in the simulator–because it can be done effectively.  There has also been a great deal of manpower and money expended to provide modern, state-of-the-art, simulator training.  Yet, all of these efforts and improvements notwithstanding, we are still making only limited use of the training capabilities of the simulators, and most of our simulator training is conducted along traditional lines.

This is not a condemnation of what we are doing, because our training is good.  In many respects, airline flight crew training is leading the way in the industrial training community.  But it should be apparent to everyone involved that we have an important area of training and checking that deserves attention.  There are many areas of potential improvement, and they should be explored.  However, if the status quo is maintained, then we may at least be able to save considerable money in simulator acquisition by not buying those features and systems that are seldom used.

This paper is available on the I/ITSEC Compendium CD-ROM.

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MOTION SIMULATION ENHANCEMENT–

THE DEVELOPMENT OF A RESEARCH G-SEAT SYSTEM

Gerald J. Kron

Simulation Products Division, The Singer Company

The methods by which man learns have long been the subject of research; the interim findings, observations, and theories have often been the subject of much controversy and argument.  Fundamental agreement exists, however, that man must have contact with his environment; he must be aware of the stimuli about him and he must interpret them and act upon their informational content.  An important portion of learning and training research, then, is directed at obtaining and understanding of how man relates to, and with, his environment.

Man’s sensory systems are the interface between him and his environment; through these systems travel the raw information used in learning and in the maintenance of task proficiency.  Considerable effort has been expended on assembling a knowledge of the operation of the various sensory systems, with various degrees of success, depending upon which sensory system is under consideration.  The knowledge derived from the visual sense, for instance, appears to be more precise, more formalized, and less subject to question than that derived from the vestibular sense and, to a greater degree, the body awareness sense.  Simulation, a technique employed for training, depends heavily on the role sensory systems play in the learning process.

This paper is available on the I/ITSEC Compendium CD-ROM.

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PROSPECTS, PROBLEMS, AND PERFORMANCE–

A CASE STUDY OF THE FIRST PILOT TRAINER USING CGI VISUALS

Captain Francis E. O’Connor, USN

Commander, Training Air Wing TWO, Naval Air Station, Kingsville, Texas

and

Dr. B. J. Shinn

Manager of Advanced Technologies Engineering

General Electric Company

and

Dr. W. Marvin Bunker

Consulting Engineer in the Advanced Technologies Engineering Laboratory

General Electric Company

The Device 2F90 was procured by the Navy in 1969 as an Operational Flight Trainer for use in conjunction with the TA4J aircraft.  The typical Operational Flight Trainer at that time was designed to provide complete systems simulation in an instrument flight environment.  Thus, the device found application as an instrument trainer and as an emergency procedures trainer.  In actual practice, syllabus application was predominantly in the instrument training area (90 percent).

In late 1971 in response to increasing pressure to achieve some “payoff” in the use of simulators by achieving some reduction in syllabus flight hours, a series of evaluations, in the instrument training portions of the chief of Naval Air training Advanced Jet Syllabus was undertaken.  In very general terms, these evaluations confirmed the efficacy of the 2F90 as an instrument trainer and projected incremental reductions in student flight time through use of simulation.  To date student flight time in the instrument syllabus has been reduced from 44 hours to 22.5 hours with consequent substantial savings in the aircraft operating costs associated with the training of student naval aviators.

This paper is available on the I/ITSEC Compendium CD-ROM.

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A RADAR PREDICTION CONSOLE FOR

PRE-MISSION PLANNING, TRAINING AND BRIEFING

Robert A. Heartz

Project Engineer of the IR&D Digital Radar Display

Simulation Development Programs at

Apollo and Ground Systems

General Electric Company

The objective of a Radar Image Prediction System is to provide a pilot or navigator with a predicted image of his enroute and target area radar display so that he can become familiar with significant terrain and cultural features as depicted by his sensor system, plan his course, and practice various approaches for achieving his mission.  The requirements of a Radar Image Prediction System are:

1)      Develop a near-real-time realistic display simulation from a database that defines terrain and cultural features.

2)      Provide a capability for quickly correlating the computed, or simulated, image with graphic (chart or photographic) data of the same area.

3)      Provide an on-line capability to update or modify the computed image based on graphic source information.

4)      Provide an interactive display capability, so that the operator can immediately view changes in the database.

The Radar Image Prediction System that meets the above requirements is illustrated in the block diagram of figure 1(a).  The digital database defines terrain elevation and cultural features by lines that are reflectivity boundaries and elevation features (ridge and valley lines) and by target points.  The image processor reads the digital database and converts the elevation and reflectivity data to a real-time radar image that is displayed on a PPI.  The Interactive Data Base Generator provides the capability to correlate the computed image and to modify the data base. 

A sketch of the basic laboratory Radar Prediction system is shown in figure 1(b).  A 16k core memory that stores the database and the high-speed image processor that generates the radar PPI display are mounted in one six-foot equipment rack.  The Interactive Data Base Generator includes the displays, the operator controls, and the logic required for generating or changing the database.  The computer image is displayed on the vertical CRT.  The image of the map or photograph is displayed on the horizontal light table.  A 45-degree beam splitter combines the two images.

This paper is available on the I/ITSEC Compendium CD-ROM.

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IMAGE QUALITY IMPROVEMENT IN COMPUTED VISUAL SCENE SIMULATION

Dr. W. Marvin Bunker

Consulting Engineer in the Advanced Technologies Engineering Laboratory

General Electric Company

When a simulation or training application requires simulation of visual scenes, a number of techniques can be used.  Wide use has been made of pictures–both still and movies–and of models, with optics alone and with servoed television cameras for display on raster-scan devices.  During the past decade Computer Generated Images (CGI) have seen increasing application to this requirement.

With CGI the scene exists as stored numbers in the system memory.  If standard TV rates are used, the computer generates 30 new scenes per second, based on the simulated relationship between the environment and the observer for each scene.  It immediately follows from this basic concept that the operator or trainee has no constraints on his path or rates of motion or acceleration.  Multiple moving models in the scene can be accommodated.  Special effects, such as blinking or directional lights, limited visibility simulation, explosion and disappearance of a target, etc., can be included.

This paper is available on the I/ITSEC Compendium CD-ROM.

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DESCRIPTION AND INITIAL EVALUATION OF A COMPUTER-BASED INDIVIDUAL TRAINER FOR THE RADAR INTERCEPT OBSERVER

Joseph W. Rigney, Director

Douglas M. Towne, Assistant Director

D. Kirk Morrison, Research Associate

Louis A. Williams, Psychological Research Associate

Behavior Technology Laboratories, University of Southern California

The Radar Intercept Officer (RIO) is a critical element in a complex man-machine relationship which emerges ultimately as a weapons system.  The complexity of the basic delivery device, the aircraft, and the high speeds at which it usually operates create operational situations that tax the maximum performance capabilities of a single individual or pilot.  Extended range weapons, such as missiles, and high aircraft speeds render visual methods of target acquisition virtually useless, and have led to the development of sophisticated electronic devices for this purpose.

The pilot is the first element in this weapons control system, maintaining the precise operation of the aircraft.  The RIO is the second integral element of control, analyzing data concerning target activity, and transmitting to the pilot action control commands based on these data.

The RIO is engaged in multiple tasks during an air intercept.  He must:

1)      manipulate the electronic equipment in a manner that maximizes its capabilities as an information source;

2)      gather and integrate electronic data with previously learned data and procedures;

3)      decide upon actions that may be performed within the operational limits of the aircraft to meet weapons launch criteria

4)      produce accurate verbal commands that constitute adequate control functions.

This paper is available on the I/ITSEC Compendium CD-ROM.

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AN INTERACTIVE FACILITY FOR THE MODIFICATION AND UPDATE OF DIGITAL RADAR LANDMASS SIMULATION DATA

Roger Dahlberg

Digital Systems Engineer

Singer Simulation Products Division

Radar landmass simulation for training until very recently was implemented using data stored on a film plate and transmissively read by a CRT/photomultiplier arrangement.  These systems, typified by the AN/APQ-T10/T11 trainer built for the USAF, have the basic limitation that the data is not easily modified or updated.  The generation of a new film plate can take six months.

With the advent of new digital memory technology it has become practical to store radar landmass data digitally and produce video by means of special digital processing.

One of the most significant advantages to an all-digital system is the fact that the radar landmass data can be changed.  Update from new cartographic information to incorporate the latest and most accurate radar-significant information and to correct previous errors is easily accomplished in an all-digital system, and presents the most compelling reason for having such a system.  A second reason is the ability to selectively delete or modify targets and navigation checkpoints, either in a real tactical situation or as a training exercise.

This paper is available on the I/ITSEC Compendium CD-ROM.

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A NEW CONCEPT OF OPERATIONS FOR

NAVAL TRAINING EQUIPMENT CENTER

CDR. Troy E. Todd, United States Navy

Director, Plans and Programs Department

Naval Training Equipment Center

It is often observed that the only constant thing in life is change.  In keeping with this truism, during the past year the Center has undergone a management overhaul.  Emerging from this process is a new concept of operation, which places the Director of Plans and Programs firmly in control of the management of the Center’s Technical Program.

For many years the Center has recognized the various disciplines required producing a successful simulator or product.  Accordingly, each project was assigned to a team composed of a Training specialist, engineer, Human Factors Specialist, Integrated Logistic support specialist and a Contract Specialist.  The combined contributions of these teams along with their counterparts in industry have produced a long list of successful simulators and have contributed greatly to the readiness of the fleet.

Each of these specialists represented a segment of line management.  There was no one truly at the helm.  As the project progressed from phase to phase one specialist or another became the dominant figure within the team.  The team concept still plays a vital role in the new concept but the facilitating type of decision-making common to line organization management has given way to a matrix-type organization.

This paper is available on the I/ITSEC Compendium CD-ROM.

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DESIGN OF SCENARIO GENERATOR SOFTWARE

FOR REAL-TIME TRAINER APPLICATIONS

R. G. Fryer

Electronic Systems Group – Eastern Division

GTE Sylvania

The requirement to generate realistic environments for use in real-time computer controlled trainers has resulted in a need for general-purpose, easy-to-use scenario generator software.  This software provides the aids and techniques for the definition, development, and evaluation of scenarios for use on training systems.  Scenario generation procedures have historically taken a back seat to the physical development of the training system itself.  Then the inability of a non-programmer to easily generate a scenario realistically simulating the true environment leads to limited use of the trainer.  This paper describes a highly interactive software system that provides a full file management capability for scenario generation.  The use of prompting messages and a problem-oriented command language makes this system easy for the non-programmers to learn and use.

This paper is available on the I/ITSEC Compendium CD-ROM.

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ACOUSTICAL SIMULATION OF A SUBMERGED SIGNAL SOURCE

Richard A. Soeldner, Electronics Engineer

and

Richard W. Woolsey

Naval Training Equipment Center

This paper will present a new approach to the simulation of underwater sounds in an ocean environment and give some of the salient advantages of this approach to the simulation of DIFAR.  The methods used to generate the required signals will be described in detail, along with the technique for controlling the frequency of the signals generated by the function generators, which is most vital to the simulation of a dynamic sound source.  A full treatment of this technique is beyond the scope of this paper; however, it is described in enough detail to indicate the approach used.  Finally, the simulation of ocean propagation and interference effects due to ocean conditions will be covered.

All of the simulation techniques discussed in this paper have been designed, built and tested, and are in operation today.

This paper is available on the I/ITSEC Compendium CD-ROM.

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THE FORMATION FLIGHT TRAINER: AN APPLICATION OF SIMULATED TECHNIQUES

Lt. Col. Dan D. Fulgham

Chief, Flying Training Division

Air Force Human Resources Laboratory

Williams Air Force Base

and

Ian N. McLeod

Project Engineer, Formation Flight Trainer

Electronics Division

Goodyear Aerospace Corporation

This paper describes the development of the first jet formation flight trainer.  This trainer, which utilizes a digital computer, a low-cost wide-angle visual scene generator, and a TV system including raster-shrinking techniques for ranging, simulates the Air Force T-38 jet trainer aircraft.  The concept of the formation flight trainer (FFT), which originated at AFHRL/FT, Williams Air Force Base, Arizona is traced from its inception through its evolution to a practical form by means of an R & D contract to Goodyear Aerospace Corporation, Akron, Ohio.  Further development, fabrication, and installation under a subsequent contract to Goodyear Aerospace are presented.  In conclusion, the AFHRL/FT training effectiveness testing using actual pilot trainees is described along with resultant data and conclusions.

This paper is available on the I/ITSEC Compendium CD-ROM.

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A TRAINING ANALYSIS EVALUATION OF ASW TRAINER

OCEAN MATH MODELS

M. H. Aronson, Senior Systems Analyst

The Singer Company, Simulation Products Division

A fundamental purpose of the Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) training effort is to train the crew of an ASW weapon system to efficiently perform its mission–detect, classify, and when necessary, destroy enemy submarines.  Such training is being provided by sophisticated simulators, which create and present synthetic target information to trainees.  The fidelity of this information is a function of the continual solution of an ocean math model in a simulation computer.  Thus the ocean math model has a major impact on ASW training effectiveness by means of its fundamental contribution to the fidelity of displayed data from which detection and classification decisions can be made; i.e., the cues for submarine detection and classification in the simulated situation are the same as those for the real world.

Within the past several years, increased capability of ASW equipment has necessitated the development of more sophisticated ASW trainers.  In order to effectively simulate/stimulate the newer, more sensitive equipment, the trainers have had to correspondingly generate more accurate ocean acoustic phenomena.  The demand for greater ocean acoustic fidelity in ASW trainers has raised a familiar debate as to how much simulation fidelity is needed to produce effective training.  This paper reports on the methods developed by The Singer Company’s Simulation Products Division (and the progress to date) to evaluate various ocean math models (in terms of ASW training effectiveness) by means of a unique computer simulation approach.

This paper is available on the I/ITSEC Compendium CD-ROM.

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TECHNICAL PUBLICATIONS AND TRAINING AND THEIR IMPACT ON COST

Frank E. Winship

Director, Support Data Engineering

McDonnell Aircraft Company

Last spring, when I first saw the list of proposed agenda topics for this meeting, I was disappointed at the apparent lack of attention to the interrelationship of technical publications and training and their impact on the cost of ownership.  Much emphasis seemed to be placed on new training hardware, primarily audiovisual systems.  It seemed to me that far too little interest was displayed in the data, which necessarily forms the basis for the primary training on any individual weapon system, namely the technical publications.  I certainly do not mean to downgrade the advantages or the advances made in the training field by these and other proposed mechanical aids.  I am sure that most are calculated to enhance training and in the process reduce costs.  However, whatever the method employed in any training program, the basis for that training is found in the technical publications.  It is, therefore, my firm belief that the training community and the publication community must work more closely together than has been my experience in the past.  Improvements in technical data meant to enhance its use in training have been excruciatingly slow.  Demands from the training community that improvements are made in publications have been very low-key or non-existent.  True, the Training Commands of both the Navy and the Air Force are represented at numerous logistic support meetings, conferences, etc.  During which the contractors are given guidance and direction.  Seldom, however, are their requirements or desires permitted to influence the publications program one way or another.

What are we, the so-called “Military Industrial Complex,” doing to ourselves as a result of all this?  Our combined efforts, at present, are doing very little to significantly reduce the exorbitantly high cost of maintaining weapon systems in their operational environment.  The annual tab for all DOD maintenance is in the order of magnitude of $20 billion, and more than half of that figure is spent for personnel and their training and the rest for hardware and equipment.

This paper is available on the I/ITSEC Compendium CD-ROM.

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THE EASTERN AIRLINES “TRIM” PROGRAM

(A NEW APPROACH TO PILOT TRAINING)

Captain T. G. Barry

Manager, B-727 Flight Standards

and

Robert E. McEmber

Manager, Training Techniques

Eastern Air Lines Flight Training Center

In the past, pilot training has not always been responsive to the needs of the individual pilot.  All pilots received the same training, at the same rate, whether they needed it or not.  Acutely aware of the deficiencies inherent in this “lock-step” training concept, the Eastern Airlines flight training staff had developed a totally new method called “TRIM” –short for Task Related Instructional Methodology.  The “TRIM” concept recognizes that individual differences are wide and real, and that these differences are magnified by individual learning rates, experience levels, motivation, and inherent aptitudes and abilities.  In the “TRIM” ground school program, only relevant subject matter is presented in a realistic cockpit mockup that is the ultimate learning carrel for this type of individualized instruction.  Here, the student is exposed to all of the operational procedures for each phase of flight, and he must respond to frequent test situations by making decisions and executing the actions required to handle cockpit tasks in a particular phase of flight.  This “learning-by-doing” method has given Eastern Airlines a training program that is 100% oriented to the job requirements of the pilot and is responsive to individual differences, making it possible for every pilot to attain a maximum level of competence in a shorter period of time.

This paper is available on the I/ITSEC Compendium CD-ROM.

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SIMULATION OF VISUAL AND MOTION CUES IN AIR COMBAT MANEUVERING*

Dr. Edward A. Stark

 and

John M. Wilson, Jr.

The Singer Company, Simulation Products Division

The Simulation Products Division of The Singer Company is currently developing a Simulator for Air-to-Air Combat (Figure 1).  The major components of the Simulator are two F-4 cockpits and two 8-window, wrap-around visual systems mounted on six-degree-of-freedom motion systems and two-target image generating systems.  Each pilot will see an electronically generated representation of the terrain, horizon, and sky.  His field of view will be limited only by the aircraft structure.  The target image generator will provide each pilot with a closed-circuit television image of the aircraft flown by the other pilot, inset in the general visual scene.  The target will be seen in the proper attitude and bearing and at the proper range, and in the configuration established by its pilot.  Working hardware on the televised model will represent the status of speed brakes and afterburners.

Proprioceptive cues will be provided to each pilot by the cockpit motion system, and by an operating G-suit, a seat vibration system and a G-seat system.

During the spring, summer and fall of 1972, three systems considered especially critical to the simulator were evaluated, integrated and re-evaluated.  These systems were the motion, terrain visual and G-suit systems.  The results of the re-evaluation, the subject of this paper, have been incorporated in the simulator, and other systems are being developed and tested.  When the simulator is delivered it will be the result of a series of design, integration, evaluation, modification and re-evaluation efforts conducted within a well-defined and highly structured task context.  Further, it will be the result not only of intensive engineering and human factors analyses, but of the extensive, intimate and skillful participation of a number of current F-4 pilots.

*This evaluation was conducted under USAF Contract F33657-72-C-0639, and was sponsored by the Aeronautical Systems Division of the Air Force Systems Command, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio.

This paper is available on the I/ITSEC Compendium CD-ROM.

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A SIMPLE SIMULATOR AND VISUAL PRESENTATION FOR STALL-SPIN TRAINING

Frederick D. Newell

Principal Engineer

Calspan Corporation

A fixed ground-based flight simulator with a television projected visual display has been developed at Calspan and used successfully to reproduce the departure, stall and spin characteristics of a high performance attack airplane.  A description of the simulator, computer and display system complex, and its adaptability as a training aid is the subject of this paper.  As an introduction to the complex, refer to Figure 1 from which it is seen that the complex is divided into two areas, the simulator room and the computer room.

Within the simulator room are a 1000-line high intensity television projector, a translucent screen that is 6 feet by 8 feet, the simulator cockpit and the feel system electronics.  Within the computer room are two Comcor Ci 5000 analog computers, a Pace 16-31R analog computer and two Honeywell DDP-116 digital computers.  An interface exists for direct connection to the IBM 370/168 digital computer.  Thus there is a vast potential for enhancing the basic system should such computer power be required for a more complex situation.  The physical layout of this complex is shown in Figure 2.  The IBM 370/168 is behind the far wall shown in this cutaway view.  The remainder of this discussion is concentrated upon descriptions of the individual subsystems of the simulator complex and uses the simulator as a training tool.

This paper is available on the I/ITSEC Compendium CD-ROM.

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VARIABLES IN TRANSFER OF TRAINING–DEVICES AND PROGRAMS

Dr. Paul W. Caro

Senior Staff Scientist

and

Wallace W. Prophet

Director

Division Number Six (Aviation)

Human Resources Research Organization (HumRRO), Fort Rucker, Alabama

For many years now engineers and psychologists have struggled to increase the training benefits of the use of training devices, and the results of their efforts have been impressive.  Or, at least, their efforts have produced some impressive devices.  But, have the training results lived up to our expectations as to the devices’ potential?  For the moment, we wish to answer this question in the negative.

If one accepts our negative response, he must be concerned with the reasons why our expectations have not been realized.  Briefly, the thesis we wish to develop in that regard, one we have expounded on many occasions, is that the manner in which the device is used is the principal factor in determining its benefit, and that our R&D efforts have paid too little attention to this factor.  What is wrong in the training device business is that training seems to be forgotten.  It is in this area, training program design, that the key to achieving real gains in training efficiency lies.  Knowledge of how to use devices effectively is the critical ingredient that all too often is missing in both the design and the utilization of devices.

This paper is available on the I/ITSEC Compendium CD-ROM.

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ELECTRONIC WARFARE/ECM SIMULATION

Richard P. Oberlin

Manager, Training and Simulation Operations

AAI Corporation

The importance of Electronic Warfare (EW) to a nation’s survival is well known today, even to the man on the street.  However, the critical need for training of EW operators is less well known being essentially confined to those who are associated with companies and Government agencies working in the EW area.  This particular situation is further compounded by the fact that it generally takes one experienced electronic warfare operator to train one student.  If all the experienced EW types were pulled out of the field and brought back as instructors, there still would not be enough of them to turn out the number of operators required to meet current needs.  The question that naturally arises then is:  “Can’t EW trainers be designed and built to alleviate this situation?”  The answer is a definite “yes” and this paper will address itself to how this can and is being done and what can be expected in the future.  Before doing that, however, basic trainer approaches will be defined and EW trainer background reviewed.

There are three basic approaches that can be taken in formulating an EW trainer.  These are the recorder approach, the stimulation approach, and the synthetic approach.  Each of these types of trainers is described briefly below.

This paper is available on the I/ITSEC Compendium CD-ROM.

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VERIFICATION OF SIMULATOR PERFORMANCE

BY FREQUENCY RESPONSE MEASUREMENT

Leonard D. Healy

and

Fred R. Cooper

Computer Laboratory

Naval Training Equipment Center

The usual method for verifying the implementation of airframe dynamics in a flight trainer is transient response tests.  These tests have the advantage of requiring both less test time and less data reduction effort than the alternate technique of measuring the frequency response of the system.  However, this saving in time and effort is made at the cost of less information about the performance of the simulator.

The addition of visual systems to flight trainers creates the need for more critical testing of the simulated aircraft dynamics.  One reason for more stringent testing is that the visual system magnifies differences between the simulator and the actual aircraft performance.  Shortcomings in the simulator that were not noticed in instrument flying become obvious with the addition of the visual system.  Another reason for trenchant examination of the simulator with a visual system is the different mode in which a pilot flies such a device.  In instrument flying, the pilot tends to make small, careful corrections.  With a visual system, he makes large, more abrupt changes in the control settings, leading to higher-amplitude and higher-frequency inputs to the simulator program.  This may result in discrepancies in the simulation, which do not occur for the instrument flight mode.

When a contract was let to add a visual system to the TA-4J Aircraft Operational Flight Trainer (OFT)2, Device 2F90, frequency response testing of both the simulated aircraft dynamics and the visual system operation were made part of the test requirements.  This paper presents the result of those tests.

This paper is available on the I/ITSEC Compendium CD-ROM.

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DIGITAL SMOOTHING TECHNIQUES APPLICABLE TO SIMULATOR/TRAINER INTERFACES

Dr. Fred O. Simons, Jr., Associate Professor of Engineering

and

Richard C. Harden, Professor of Engineering

Florida Technological University

and

Barney L. Capehart

Associate Professor of Industrial and Systems Engineering

University of Florida

The concept of large-scale weapon system simulators for the purpose of training the required highly skilled military operating personnel has been influenced considerably by the advent of the modern economical digital minicomputer which not only lends itself to conveniently handling all the centralized bookkeeping operations required for large-scale simulations, but it can also function to generate dynamic variables for simulated subsystem components.  In fact, in almost all cases the latter function will represent a large majority of the digital processing required to service large-scale simulators.  Since interfacing techniques can influence the digital processor load for this latter function by several hundred percent, it is of prime importance to exercise careful consideration for the manner in which all dynamic subsystem variables are interfaced.  To this end, the purpose of this presentation is to present analog hardware, digital hardware, and digital software interfacing techniques, which can be traded off with digital processing requirements to realize economical savings in a proposed simulator/trainer system.

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PRODUCTION LEVEL CAI IN THE UNITED STATES MARINE CORPS

Captain W. G. Kemple

Computer Aided Instruction Project Officer, S-3 Section

Marine Corps Communication-Electronics School, Marine Corps Base

Twentynine Palms, California

and

R. J. Modell

Systems Analyst, Navy Programs

Federal Systems Division, Sperry Univac

and

Dr. F. J. Blaisdell

Educational Consultant, Navy Programs

Federal Systems Division, Sperry Univac

At the end of the last decade, technological developments in education, psychology, and the computer sciences probably reached their highest point of integration up to that time in a technique called computer-aided instruction.  The demand placed upon military and civilian educational systems to produce skilled personnel for various occupations put stresses on these systems to furnish the necessary trained manpower output.  At the same time, however, this demand lent an impetus to finding ways of automating some of the highly monotonous and inefficient tasks required of instructors.  Instructing had become a very laborious, intensive, and expensive process in some cases.  CAI came along just in time.

CAI Systems were largely in a research stage during the period from 1957 to 1969.  In fact, available early CAI systems were mainly used to perform exploratory research on learning or to compare CAI with conventional instruction (CI).  Later CAI systems, which used teletype student terminals and dedicated computers, were employed to teach short courses or lessons to test the feasibility of CAI in practical situations.  Several major problems arose in the practical setting:

1)         Only a few students could be trained at any one time with CAI because available dedicated CAI systems could not service more than 12-16 student terminals

2)         Teletypes produced a noisy classroom, accumulated paper, and were inefficient in correcting simple typing errors.

3)         Requirements for computer programmers were high and related costs were prohibitive.

4)         A simple author language that did not require computer-programming experience was not available.

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NEXT MAJOR STEP FOR CAI IN IBM’s FIELD ENGINEERING DIVISION

Larry R. Duffy, Cape Kennedy Facility

IBM Corporation

From the early 1960’s, IBM’s Field Engineering Division has maintained a very strong commitment toward individualized learning.  Initial efforts addressed the application of programmed instruction.  Extensive research in the mid-1960’s led to the implementation of a nationwide CAI system in 1968.  In the early 1970’s the IBM World Trade Corporation extended CAI to some one hundred countries throughout the world over a sophisticated telecommunications network which included the use of a satellite.

Approximately 20 percent of IBM’s maintenance training in the United States is presently being accomplished via individualized instruction administered from a centralized computer through IBM 2740 terminals located at branch offices throughout the country.  The present system incorporates a wide variety of media in the form of microfiche, films, filmstrips, and actual devices.  A good deal of the material is presented at the terminal, although the direction has been toward use of the terminal for more complex learning situations, for example, simulation.  The existing system has provided a substantial base from which design efforts for a future CAI system could proceed.

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A NEW APPROACH TO THE EVALUATION OF VISUAL ATTACHMENTS TO FLIGHT SIMULATORS

Moses Aronson, Head, Electronics & Acoustics Laboratory

Naval Training Equipment Center

Present methods of measuring the performance characteristics of a visual attachment to flight simulators do not indicate whether the visual cues which a pilot uses to perform a visual flight task, such as landing, are adequately presented to him.  Parameters such as optical resolution, depth of field for the optical probe, field of view, bandwidth of the television system and highlight brightness are definitions of the image storage, transmission or display components of the visual attachment.  Working values of these parameters were presented at the Fifth Naval Training Device Center and Industry Conference by this author.  Since these parameters are obvious and susceptible to scientific measurement, it was presumed then that specifying enough details on the terrain model, a certain level of optical resolution, bandwidth or brightness, would provide the pilot with as many visual cues in the simulator as in the real world.  But how are the subtler cues such as egocentric distance localization, depth perception and depth discrimination, for example, determined except by dynamic man-in-the-loop tests?

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RELATIVE EFFECTIVENESS OF TWO AND THREE DIMENSIONAL IMAGE STORAGE MEDIA

Barry C. King, Jr. and Daniel B. Jones

Martin Marietta Aerospace

This paper describes experiments conducted to evaluate the ability of subjects to perceive the dimensionality of source material presented under dynamic conditions on a TV display.  This source material includes a series of simulated military–type targets that are viewed in dive approaches and along selected constant altitude paths.  Key results, which summarize subject performance, are presented, together with a discussion of the relative importance of motion-dependent cues to apparent depth.

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HOLOGRAMS IN DICHROMATED GELATIN

Denis R. Breglia and Alfred H. Rodemann

Physical Sciences Laboratory

Naval Training Equipment Center

I am sure everyone is familiar with holography and a hologram’s property of displaying a three-dimensional image.  This property is a consequence of a hologram’s more general property of recording and reconstructing wavefronts.  It is this more general property which will be discussed today.  The holograms, which will be described, are meant to be used as image relaying or imaging devices rather than as image storage and displaying devices.

A hologram, which is the recorded interference pattern produced by two mutually coherent wavefronts, has the ability to reconstruct or recreate either of the two recorded wavefronts upon illumination by the other.  This is illustrated in the first figure.  In the recording process, wavefronts or beams A and B illuminate the recording material.  After processing, the recording material has the ability to reconstruct A upon illumination by B or vice-versa with some losses due to less than 100% diffraction efficiency and aberrations due to a variety of reasons.  In the most familiar holograms the two recorded wavefronts are the wavefronts formed by light scattered from a three-dimensional object and the unperturbed referenced wavefront.  Figure 2 illustrates the recording and reconstruction of such a hologram.

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EFFECTIVE LOW-COST SIMULATION

Dr. Elmo E. Miller

Senior Scientist

Human Resources Research Organization

In developing weapon system simulators, it has become common practice to strive for as high fidelity as possible.  Generally the simulator is indistinguishable from the real thing, both in general appearance and in the necessary task cues.  But sometimes we question seriously whether high fidelity is really critical for effective training.  We pay for fidelity not only with money, but also with development time and personnel to maintain and operate the system.

We actually know a great deal about what cues are critical for effective training through the technology of task analysis.  Mere mockups proved to be extremely effective in several training experiments 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9.  We know that mockups, and low-fidelity trainers generally, are especially effective for learning procedures and for early stages of other skills.

Today, I am going to discuss development of a low-cost trainer for the tactical control officer (TCO) in the Hawk missile system, and the various techniques and materials we developed to use with it.  This is a rather complex decision-making task, and it seemed doubtful whether a simple trainer would still be effective with a task this complex.  I also want to discuss some other practical considerations in using such a trainer, compared with a high-fidelity trainer which it was designed to supplement.

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ADVANCES IN UNDERWATER ACOUSTIC MODELING

E. F. Meyer, Project Engineer

Naval Training Equipment Center

The major purpose of a training device is to provide simulated experience in order to obtain skill and understanding in an operational situation.  Training in the actual environment has a number of disadvantages.  It is expensive, the danger element is never eliminated, and instructional supervision is limited in the actual environment.  These considerations reflect the desirability for training devices, which simulate not only the weapon system but also the environment.  It is possible to simulate the behavior of the environment by a mathematical model.  The obvious first step in modeling is to gain an understanding of the phenomena in the ocean environment.

As sound travels through the ocean, the pressure associated with the wavefront diminishes.  This decrease in pressure is referred to as propagation loss.  There are basically three factors, which contribute to this loss.

First, spreading of the wavefront causes the total energy associated with the wavefront to be distributed over a larger area, resulting in a decrease in intensity.  As the energy travels away from the source, it spreads in the form of a spherical shell.  The decrease in intensity is exactly proportional to the increase in the surface area of the sphere.

Second, the reduction in sound pressure level due to absorption and scattering is usually termed “attenuation loss.”  Absorption is essentially the conversion of acoustic energy to hear.  Scattering occurs when sound rays strike bubbles, fish, and suspended matter.  Although scattering is a component in the attenuation of sound, its contribution is not as important as that of absorption.

Third, the surface of the ocean is rarely smooth; therefore, sound energy striking it is seldom reflected specularly (mirror reflection).  Since the ocean surface is constantly changing, the sound energy is reflected in many directions.  Surface reflection loss is a function of both sea state and frequency.

The ocean bottom may also reflect sound waves.  Sound reflected from the ocean bottom usually suffers a significant loss in intensity.  The amount of energy, which is lost at the bottom, will vary with the composition of the bottom, roughness of the bottom, frequency of the sound wave, and the angle at which the sound wave strikes the bottom.

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ADAPTIVE TRAINING DEMONSTRATIONS–LESSONS LEARNED

Dr. John P. Charles and Robert M. Johnson

LOGICON, Inc.

Over the past few years, LOGICON has conducted a series of studies for the Naval Training Equipment Center concerned with exploiting and applying advanced training technology to weapon system trainers.  The first study included a review of an existing Airborne Weapons System Trainer (AWST) and a survey of training and related digital computer technology.  Three subsequent studies demonstrated advanced technology applications to a basic, intermediate, and advanced air-training task.  Much was learned in these technical demonstrations and will be summarized in the succeeding paragraphs.  First the nature of each of the demonstrations will be reviewed and then some of the major “lessons learned” will be discussed.

The first study was conceptual in nature and began with a brief review of a typical fighter AWST.  The review revealed that in large:

1)      AWSTs were being used as procedure trainers

2)      There was no integrated training plan or syllabus

3)      There was no objective performance or criteria measurement

4)      The instructor’s role was ill defined.

The last part of the study was a survey of training methodology and trainer computer technology.  The conclusions exceeded initial expectations.  It was pointed out that even routine state-of-the-art technology, if applied, could conceptually improve training significantly and unburden and aid the instructor.  Furthermore, existing technology could permit effective implementation of advanced developments in training methodology.

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TIME AND COST EFFECTIVE TECHNIQUES IN SUPPORTIVE COMPUTERIZED TRAINING SYSTEMS

Harvey Pollack

Director

Learning Management and Resources Center

New York Institute of Technology

The computer that will respond to a raised eyebrow or a quizzical expression, carry on an interactive intelligent discussion with its human user, or recognize the difference between nervousness and lack of knowledge is yet to be invented.  This is the stuff of which a teacher is made.  These are the precious talents of the man or woman who stands in front of a class and nurtures the student’s latent ability to reason.  Such responsive activities still lie in the realm of human relationships and there they will remain for a long time to come.

Developmental efforts to find an appropriate place for the computer in the educational process have been gathering momentum for a number of years.  Although no one has succeeded in endowing the computer with the facilities it needs to assume full tutorial stature; much progress has been made in utilizing it successfully in a supportive role.  Even in such applications, however, it has not received the acceptance it merits.  Aside from the resistance of the teaching fraternity to the introduction of impersonal educative devices and the unavailability of good course material in many disciplines, high costs account for the relatively sparse usage of computer assisted instruction (CAI) throughout the nation.

In order to evaluate the techniques and procedures we have developed at the New York Institute of Technology for improving cost effectiveness, let us look briefly at the principal factors which have thus far made computerized instruction prohibitively expensive for most school systems and training centers.

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Papers published, but not presented:

IMPROVING SOCIAL BEHAVIOR WITH PLATO IV

Dr. Arthur S. Blaiwes, Research Psychologist

Human Factors Laboratory, Naval Training Equipment Center

The PLATO IV computer-based education system and some of the rationale and approach with respect to its evaluation are described briefly.  PLATO IV will be evaluated in its application to the training of factors related to the optimization of social influence; specifically, that influence exerted between company commanders and recruits at recruit training commands.  Current approaches to teaching social skills are inadequate to meet the needs for such skills.  Computer-administered instruction offers a novel and potentially effective medium through which to improve, through training, the quality of social influence.

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A PROCESS FOR CHOOSING COST-EFFECTIVE MEDIA FOR PROPOSED TRAINING SYSTEMS

Dr. Richard Braby, Ed.D.

Team Leader, TECEP Project

Training Analysis and Evaluation Group

Naval Training Equipment Center

Choosing a mix of instructional media for a proposed military training program has proven to be a complex task.  One of the factors contributing to this complexity is that military training programs cover a wide range of skills.  Included are such things as recalling facts and principles, procedure following, signal recognition, decision making under stress, leadership, vehicle control, and many other types of learned behavior.  Job level proficiency is a frequent requirement for graduation, and the cost of poor training is measured in terms of accidents, lost lives, and failed missions.

Another factor is that a wide range of instructional media and methods are available today.  Still more are about to emerge from the research and development efforts of training laboratories.  Techniques significantly more efficient and less expensive than traditional techniques are being developed.  Promising innovations include computer-driven systems such as the Advanced Instructional System being developed by the Air Force, TICCIT, PLATO IV, and machine adaptive simulators.  An inexpensive long-playing videodisc system with random access using laser techniques will probably become available during 1975.

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EXPERIMENTAL MODEL VISUAL DISPLAY FOR SHIPHANDLING TRAINERS

Francisco Chea

Project Engineer

Visual Simulation and Electronics and Acoustics Laboratory

Naval Training Equipment Center

This paper is a digest of a final technical report, which resulted from an in-house investigation to define visual simulation parameters and to identify design criteria for a proposed shiphandling trainer.  The investigation had involved the following:

1)      Assembly of an experimental destroyer mooring system consisting of a wide-angle television system, mockup bridge and projection area, three-dimensional harbor model, TV camera transport/motion device, and analog computer.

2)      Performance testing of the system’s equipment.

3)      Subjective evaluation of the system’s training potential.

4)      Establishment of a specification for the trainer.

The following information, which was extracted from the final technical report, will be described in this paper.

5)      Functional and operational concept of an experimental destroyer mooring trainer.

6)      Equipment used and its performance.

7)      Subjective evaluation of the system’s training potential which was performed by active-duty destroyer officers.

This paper is available on the I/ITSEC Compendium CD-ROM.

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IMPACT OF AUTOMATED TRAINING UPON INSTRUCTOR STATION DESIGN

Edwin Cohen, Ph. D.

Simulation Products Division, The Singer Company

Complex training devices, such as operational flight trainers (OFT’s) and weapon system trainers (WST’s), are advanced evolutionary forms of the archetypal Link “blue box.”  Early training devices were primarily concerned with simulation of the cockpit instruments and controls; simulator training paralleled, as closely as the device’s limitations would permit, training given in the aircraft: takeoff, climb, airwork, descent, approach, and landing.  The earliest trainers had necessary controls for operating the device, but no instructor station as such.  The instructor station evolved as an instructor-operator station (IOS) incorporating operator functions, such as those relating to ground radio facilities, aircraft conditions (e.g., center of gravity), environmental conditions (e.g., wind velocity), and simulated malfunctions; information provided to the instructor, located away from the cockpit, was of the kind he would have if he were instructing from the aft seat of a trainer aircraft, with the trainee in the front seat–i.e., repeaters of the trainee’s instruments.

As training devices continued to develop, there was an increasing appreciation of their superiority, compared with the aircraft, in allowing precise control of conditions of practice, and in providing reliable and valid measures of trainee performance.  This appreciation led to the imposition of more and more tasks, such as malfunction insertion, upon the instructor.

The instructor in the typical OFT or WST in the field today has two kinds of duties–those relating to instruction per se, and those concerned with simulator operation.

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ORLANDO POLICE DEPARTMENT COMPLAINT DESK PERSONNEL TRAINING SIMULATOR

Robert D. Doering, Ph.D., P.E.

College of Engineering

Florida Technological University

In most police departments, the Communications Center is the focal point of all public calls and other inputs to the system.  It houses the personnel and equipment necessary to receive and integrate all information pertaining to routine or emergency situations and control and coordinate the men and equipment needed to respond to the situation.  Personnel typically include Dispatch Officers who receive the incident calls, assess the force status situation, and assign the necessary response, and Radio Operators who communicate with the field forces.

It must be recognized that both Dispatch Officers and Radio Operator are key positions in fulfilling the mission of the Department.  The Dispatch Officer is many times the first and only contact of the citizen seeking help from the Department.  On the other hand, the Radio Operator may be the only link the field officers have with his source of help.  Personnel manning these positions must be carefully selected for their job related abilities and further trained in their duties to the required proficiency, or rejected as unacceptable.  The Communications Center personnel should be trained as an elite group comparable to special uniformed units.

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EOSS–A DYNAMIC REAL-TIME SIMULATOR FOR EVALUATION OF ELECTRO-OPTICAL GUIDANCE IN A MAN/MACHINE ENVIRONMENT*

Scott Haselwood

Technical Director of Electro-Optical Simulation System (EOSS)

Martin Marietta Aerospace

Dorwin L. Kilbourn, Physicist, Advanced Sensors Directorate

U.S. Army Missile Command, Redstone Arsenal

The Electro-Optical Simulation System (EOSS) to be completed in early 1974 will be one of the key elements of the U.S. Army’s Advanced Simulation Facility located at Redstone Arsenal, Alabama.  As one of three major simulation laboratories, the EOSS provides realistic and precisely controlled spectral and dynamic environments for the non-destructive testing of a wide variety of ultra-violet, visible and near infrared seeker systems.  This precision test tool will be used by scientists and engineers for developing and evaluating guidance components, subsystems, and major assemblies throughout the design, development and prototype cycles.  In addition, the laboratory will permit the testing of the actual missile guidance hardware in a real-time simulation.  The facility has been designed so that growth can be easily accomplished.  Addition of a Weapons Delivery System Simulation (WDSS), for example, extends the EOSS’s capability to encompass a total weapons system simulation by providing the man/machine/target interface.  Thus, the interaction between a fire control system, the missile, the carrier, the pilot/gunner, and the target are analogous to those experienced in the real world and are effected without segmenting the simulation.  The main difference here is that a large variety of electro-optical concepts can be tested nondestructively and repeatedly over a wide range of parameter variations and precision controlled flight environments.

*Work performed under contract DAAHO1-71-C-0587, U.S. Army Missile Command, Huntsville, Alabama.

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TRAINING–AN ENGINEERING PROCESS

Andrew Klemmer

Branch Manager of Military Customer Training and Training Devices

The Douglas Aircraft Company

The Training Specialist has historically found himself in the predicament of Mark Twain’s Juggler, peddling an act at which almost everyone considers himself an authority and critic.  Everyone has extensive experience with the process; everyone understands the task; sooner or later everyone tries it for themselves.  Simply keep several items in motion–all at the same time.

Juggler and Training Specialist share another method of operation–the system approach.  Based on experience with Training Specialists, it would be no surprise to find that a good portion of the discussion among Jugglers, when and if they gather at meetings and conventions, would center on charts and models of their chosen or proposed system of keeping more and more and moving faster and faster.

The Juggler however is “one-up” on the Training Specialist.  Once the Juggler has designed his system and implemented it, before an audience, he has resolved all his responsibilities to his patrons and to his art.  His system is in fact contained, and while it might be blended into a total circus, the juggling activity is distinct, with a starting point and a conclusion that are of no particular consequence to the performance of those appearing prior or subsequent.  In short, the system is not part of a larger system.

The event of the components of the Training system being put into motion simply marks a point in a process whose beginnings are entwined in larger systems, or non-systems, and whose conclusions cannot be accurately determined.

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PREDICTION OF TRAINING DEVICE EFFECTIVENESS FROM QUANTITATIVE TASK INDICES

Dr. Angelo Mirabella and George R. Wheaton

Senior Research Scientists

American Institutes for Research

The problem of task fidelity is one that continually faces designers of training devices.  Early during conceptualization of the device, decisions must be made concerning those features of the operational task, which should be incorporated into the trainer in order to make the device optimally effective for both the acquisition and transfer of skills.  Complementary divisions are needed concerning those features of the operational task that can be cost-effectively eliminated.  Yet, objective means for making such decisions on an a priori basis (i.e., before the device is actually built) have never been developed.  In particular, quantitative methods have been lacking with which to relate variations in trainer task characteristics to variations in skill acquisition and skill transfer.  The pragmatic consequence of this lack of a predictive methodology has been incorporation into training devices–and, in particular, simulators–of as much realism as the state of the art and available dollars will permit.  Increasingly, the cost effectiveness of such a response to training needs has been questioned.

A major stumbling block to the development of more objective and reliable approaches to device design has been the lack of a widely accepted and generic methodology for quantitatively analyzing and describing trainee tasks.  It was the desire to work toward such a methodology, which prompted NTEC to undertake a program of research on trainee task quantification and prediction of training effectiveness.  Two major issues had to be addressed in the course of this program.  First, would measures of training effectiveness (i.e., rate of skill acquisition, level of transfer) vary in some predictable manner as features of a training device were manipulated?  Unless there was a relationship between these two sets of variables, prediction of effectiveness would not be feasible.  Second, and even more basically, would it be possible to describe the critical features of a device reliably and along a number of quantitative dimensions?  Unless such descriptions were possible, there would be no way of investigating the relationship of interest.

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SIMULATION OF A DEEP SUBMERSIBLE

Emmanuel S. Psarakis

Naval Training Equipment Center

Barney L. Capehart

Associate Professor of Industrial and Systems Engineering

The University of Florida

A number of deep submersibles have been used by the United States Navy recently in various operations, such as for research in Marine Biology, Oceanography, Underwater Rescue Missions, and Underwater Terrain Reconnaissance.

Deep submersibles are slow moving, blunt-body shaped, small submarines manned, usually, by a crew of two to four men.  They lack the plane control surfaces which conventional submarines use for control.  Instead, most deep submersibles use side thrusters (propellers) mounted symmetrically with respect to the vertical plane and above the center of gravity.

Currently, crews to man and operate these deep submersibles are trained by making actual dives in these vehicles.  This method of training, besides being costly, possesses a certain factor of risk.  A more effective and safer method of training could be provided by a simulator, which would simulate all the functions of an actual deep submersible, as well as its motion characteristics through water.  Such a simulator was designed and built for the United States Navy Training Equipment Center (NAVTTAEQUIPCEN).  The simulator consists of a spherically shaped structure (control cab) which is mounted on top of a motion system.  This structure contains all the controls and instruments necessary for the operation of the simulator and provides room for two trainees and an instructor.  The motion system provides for movement of the control cab in longitudinal, lateral and vertical directions, as well as for roll, pitch and yaw.  The signals necessary to drive the motion system are generated in a digital computer by solving the equations of a mathematical model.  The computer signals are transformed to electrical impulses and accepted by the hardware of the motion system in a specially designed interface.

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VISUAL TOLERANCES FOR SIMULATOR OPTICS

Joseph A. Puig

Research Psychologist

Human Factors Laboratory, Naval Training Equipment Center

This paper discusses problems associated with the determination of tolerances for optical systems that are directly coupled to the human eye.  Adequate total performance of the combined physical and physiological optical systems is shown to be dependent upon modifications of the optical image by the eye and processing of the retinal image by the brain.  Physical, physiological, and psychological interactions are considered for application to simulator optical design.

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FFT APPLICATIONS TO ACOUSTIC PROPAGATION AND SONAR BEAM FORMING SIMULATION PROBLEMS

R. F. Rice and M. D. Griffin

The Singer Company, Simulation Products Division

The development and subsequent application of the Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) is a matter of such extensive record that it need scarcely be mentioned here.  The FFT has revolutionized many aspects of computational mathematics, not the least of which is the field of digital signal processing.  Indeed, progress in this area has been of such magnitude as to diminish the significance of the FFT as a computational tool in other areas; many users have, in fact, come to equate the term “FFT” with a time-to-frequency transform and “IFFT” (Inverse FFT) with a frequency-to-time transform.  That this is only one of many potential uses has been pointed out in the past; we will here discuss two, which have relevance to the Navy because of their possible application to advanced ASW training devices.

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HUMAN ENGINEERING CONSIDERATIONS FOR INSTRUCTOR STATIONS

Clark Roberts

Human Engineer

General Electric Company’s Apollo and Ground Systems Division

This paper presents a current Human Engineering problem and explores a practical approach to solving the problem.

Experience in the design of training device instructor stations (consoles and workspaces) has shown that each training situation has unique instructor/operator requirements.  Since the equipment and spatial arrangements are a direct function of the operational (training) requirements, standard console design concepts are not only more costly but also less effective when all training aspects are considered.  The steps required to optimize an instructor station will be discussed with photographs and sketches as examples.  Hopefully, this discussion will stimulate interest and lead to the exploration of new approaches to the problem of training device instructor stations.

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USE OF NON-CONVENTIONAL OPTICAL MATERIALS FOR VISUAL SIMULATION

Dr. Gottfried R. Rosendahl

Research Physicist

Naval Training Equipment Center

Since this presentation shall be restricted to refractive optics at this time, it may be best to state first what conventional optical materials are.  The most conventional materials is, of course, glass.  For special applications and refractive virtual displays are part of it, certain plastics have worked themselves slowly but surely into a conventional position.

With respect to visual simulation, two types of displays have to be considered virtual image displays and projection or screen displays.  The latter will necessitate some remarks at the end of this discourse, while our main emphasis will be on virtual image or infinity displays.  They can be considered to represent giant magnifiers, eyepieces, or ocular systems imaging a relatively small projection screen or large CRT into optical infinity which can be looked at from a viewing area of between 6 to 18 inches diameter (the avoidance of the term “exit pupil” is intentional) at a distance from the “lens” as large as reasonably possible.  (See figure 1.)

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COMPUTER MANAGED TRAINING

CONCEPT AND IMPLEMENTATION

A. J. Whitehurst

Training Systems Engineering

Hughes Aircraft Company

In 1970, some innovative U.S. Navy personnel involved with the F-14 Program established a Navy/contractor team under COMFAIRMIRAMAR at NAS Miramar, California.  The specific purpose of this team was to establish an integrated state-of-the-art training system to implement the aircrew and maintenance personnel training mission of the F-14 Readiness Squadron.  This on-site team concept provided a continual transfusion of Navy fleet operational experience and contractor training/technical expertise.  As such, the underlying precepts of Instructional System Development (ISD) technology were focused upon the unique training situation of the F-14 Readiness Squadron.  This situation was unique in the involvement of a new, highly sophisticated weapon system with training requirements ranging from complex tactics to very basic maintenance procedures.  This application of ISD technology was conceptually oriented toward a training system component model such as depicted in Figure 1.

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