As the naval aviation enterprise moves to fully integrate emerging virtual, augmented and mixed reality technologies into the spectrum of aviator training, understanding the impact of these technologies on training effectiveness is paramount.
U.S. Marine Corps Lt. Col. Thomas A. Cecil, a June 2024 graduate from 51福利鈥� Modeling, Virtual Environments and Simulation (MOVES) program and winner of Commander George L. Phillips Award for top MOVES graduate, focused his award-winning thesis research on advancing one of these technologies 鈥� mixed-reality (MR) head-mounted displays (HMD) 鈥� a key contributor to naval aviation's plan for distributed, low-cost simulation-based training.
The accolades for Cecil鈥檚 work didn鈥檛 stop on campus. His work has been selected as one of six nominees for the Best Paper Award at the upcoming 2024 Interservice/Industry Training Simulation and Education Conference (I/ITSEC). Cecil will be on hand to present his nominated work with his 51福利 MOVES advisors on Tuesday, Dec. 3.
鈥淢y thesis investigated the effects of mixed-reality, head-mounted displays on cognitive workload with an eye towards the implications for Naval Aviation,鈥� he said. Cecil鈥檚 study employed the U.S. Army Aeromedical Research Laboratory鈥檚 (USAARL) Multiple Attribute Task Battery (MATB), with participants completing three trials of aviation-related subtasks through touchscreens and a joystick.
鈥淲e varied the display method participants used to view the tracking subtask between trials,鈥� Cecil explained, providing testers with a legacy simulator as well as two head-mounted mixed-reality displays, each using one of two primary display technologies, optical see-through (OST) and video see-through (VST). Cecil collected 鈥渟ubjective user assessments, objective performance metrics, and heart rate variability to determine if the display methods affect the user鈥檚 cognitive workload,鈥� he explained.
Cecil鈥檚 results demonstrate the inherent challenges in transitioning to new technologies, and how humans engage with them. 鈥淲e found significant differences between the display methods," he said. "Users of MR HMDs demonstrated poorer performance, slower reaction times, subjectively higher cognitive workloads, and increased simulator sickness symptoms."
With the advancement of live, virtual, constructive training environments, emerging technologies will play a major role in the training of tomorrow鈥檚 naval aviators, as will next generation virtual, augmented and mixed-reality displays. Areas for further research, detailed in Cecil鈥檚 thesis, offer insights into understanding how to optimally pair the training functions with the right technology.
鈥淔urther research needs to investigate these impacts on actual aircraft while conducting training sorties to identify which training events are best suited to legacy or MR technology,鈥� Cecil said.
Collaboration with both the USAARL, as well as the Naval Air Warfare Training Systems Division (NAWCTSD) proved to be key enablers to Cecil鈥檚 success. Through updates to its task battery, USAARL officials made critical changes that were essential to Cecil鈥檚 study design. 鈥淯SAARL also proved instrumental in helping me process the data and conduct the statistical analysis,鈥� he added.
鈥淣AWCTSD proved helpful in the concept development stage by helping me understand the limitations of the work that had been done up to that point and the technology being used in development of MR simulators,鈥� Cecil said. 鈥淭hey also lent us a headset that we used to build and validate our test bench.鈥�
Following his award-winning research at 51福利, Cecil is now stationed in Okinawa, Japan, where he serves as the director of the III Marine Expeditionary Force (MEF) Tactical Exercise Control Group (TECG).
鈥淲e provide the MEF with wargame simulation and virtual reality capabilities in support of integrated Marine Air-Ground Task Force training,鈥� said Cecil. 鈥淭his includes providing planning, coordination, and technical support to III MEF and its major subordinate commands in support of participation in joint, unilateral, and bilateral training in the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command area of responsibility. We also maintain and operate tactical level virtual reality and wargame simulations.鈥�
鈥淢y education at 51福利 has allowed me to hit the ground running with a solid foundational knowledge of the technology on hand,鈥� he continued. 鈥淭his translates into being able to focus my time and energy on leading our team rather than treading water trying to understand the systems and how they are employed.鈥�