The Effects of Control System and Display Variations for an Attack Helicopter Mission through Piloted Simulation

Research into methods by which highly maneuverable advanced helicopters can be made to function - with reasonable pilot workload levels - as stable platforms for target designation and/or weapon delivery at night and in adverse weather is a major interest of the U.S. Army Aeromechanics Laboratory. Two candidate techniques under investigation are: (1) helicopters control system modifications that alter the aircraft's response to pilot control inputs and to external inputs such as turbulence and (2) variations in the methods of which critical information is displayed to the pilot in an attempt to reduce the effort required to interpret and respond to a given situation while still maintaining a satisfactory level of system performance. In support of this research, a piloted simulator experiment was designed and conducted to assess the effects on overall system performance and pilot workload of variations in control system characteristics and display format and logic for a nighttime attack helicopter mission. This paper describes the experiment and presents major results and conclusions. (Author)