State of the art mobile computing is designed to withstand variable rugged environments. Specific platforms including mobile phones, GPS devices, tablets, Netbooks and laptops that are used by the general public and increasingly by dismounted military users.
Small computing devices which rival the compact size of traditional personal digital assistants (PDA) have recently
established a market niche. These computing devices are small enough to be considered unobtrusive for humans to wear.
The computing devices are also powerful enough to run full
multi-tasking general purpose operating systems. This paper
will explore the wearable computer information system for dismounted applications recently fielded for ground-based
US Air Force use. The environments that the information systems are used in will be reviewed, as well as a description
of the net-centric, ground-based warrior. The paper will conclude with a discussion regarding the importance of
intuitive, usable, and unobtrusive operator interfaces for dismounted operators.
KEYWORDS: 3D displays, Visualization, 3D acquisition, Video, Head, Situational awareness sensors, Target detection, 3D volumetric displays, Signal processing, Sensors
Several laboratory studies and flight demonstrations have indicated the potential benefits to operators/pilots of combined audio/visual displays (McKinley and Ericson, 1997). The primary focus of these previous studies was cockpit applications but significant laboratory and field work was accomplished in command and control applications. However, most audio and visual displays and their associated symbologies have been developed independently and therefore were not integrated in a human factors sense. Potential benefits from developing integrated audio/visual displays and symbologies include: reduced operator response time, improved situation awareness, reduced search excursions, improved visual target detection ranges, improved target discrimination, and reduced workload. In order to realize these, and other potential benefits, research is needed to truly integrate aural and visual displays and symbologies. The purpose of this paper is to present the results from previous studies and describe a plan to improve the integration of audio/visual displays and symbologies.
Cathode ray tube (CRT) technology dominates the direct view display market. Mature CRT technology for many designs is still the preferred choice. CRT manufacturers have greatly improved the size and weight of the CRT displays. High performance CRTs continue to be in great demand, however, supply have to contend with the vanishing CRT vendor syndrome. Therefore, the vanishing CRT vendor syndrome fuels the search for an alternate display technology source. Within the past 10 years, field emission display (FED) technology had gained momentum and, at one time, was considered the most viable electronic display technology candidate [to replace the CRT]. The FED community had advocated and promised many advantages over active matrix liquid crystal displays (AMLCD), electro luminescent (EL) or Plasma displays. Some observers, including potential FED manufacturers and the Department of Defense, (especially the Defense Advanced Research Project Agency (DARPA)), consider the FED entry as having leapfrog potential. Despite major investments by US manufacturers as well as Asian manufacturers, reliability and manufacturing difficulties greatly slowed down the advancement of the technology. The FED manufacturing difficulties have caused many would-be FED manufacturing participants to abandon FED research. This paper will examine the trends, which are leading this nascent technology to its downfall. FED technology was once considered to have the potential to leapfrog over AMLCD's dominance in the display industry. At present the FED has suffered severe setbacks and there are very few [FED] manufacturers still pursuing research in the area. These companies have yet to deliver a display beyond the prototype stage.
Future display configurations will encompass multiple displays (as well as multiple display technologies within a single display), configured in a manner that allows the displays to be perceived as a single integrated image. Visual display technology is progressing rapidly beyond the traditional capabilities of the early industry display workhorse `the cathode ray tube'. Configuring multiple displays (to perform as a video wall, a high-resolution display monitor or a tiled display) will enhance display performance as well as requiring display designer to perform trade-off to compensate for a specific display technology's limitation. This paper will document and discuss the many of the technology issues that may be optimized for multiple digital display configurations.
Modern video projectors are becoming more compact and capable. Various display technologies are very competitive and are delivering higher performance and more compact projectors to market at an ever quickening pace. However the end users are often left with the daunting task of integrating the 'off the self projectors' into a previously existing system. As the projectors become more digitally enhanced, there will be a series of designs, and the digital projector technology matures. The design solutions will be restricted by the state of the art at the time of manufacturing. In order to allow the most growth and performance for a given price, many design decisions will be made and revisited over a period of years or decades. A modular open digital system design concept is indeed a major challenge of the future high definition digital displays for al applications.
Flat panel display (FPD) technologies have emerged with smaller depth, size, and power than the cathode ray tube technology that now dominates the display market. Liquid crystal displays in general and active matrix liquid crystal displays (AMLCD), in particular, are the FPD technology of choice. The AMLCD technology is well established has undergone dramatic improvements in the past few years, a trend which is likely to continue. In recent years some potential or want-to- be ('wanabe') alternate technologies, such as field emission displays (FED), high gain emissive displays and vacuum fluorescent displays (VFD), have received substantial investments. For example, the VFD knowledge level has reached technology status as segmented displays in automotive and instrumentation applications. Much work has been done to improve FED technology status, resulting in many attempts to build production quality prototypes. However, no FED has actually gone into production. The question still remains: how close to production are these nascent technologies? This paper will examine how fast field emission displays are progressing towards technology status, which is defined as a display technology that is incorporated in products accepted by the market. This paper will provide a status update of where FED companies are and where they may be heading. Current development programs, recent demonstrations, and possible future product offerings will be discussed.
Current flight simulators and trainers do not provide acceptable levels of visual display performance (performance that would allow ground based trainers to economically replace aircraft flying training) for many air-to-air and air-to- ground training scenarios. Ground training for pilots could be made significantly more realistic, allowing the ground-based curricula to be enlarged. The enhanced ground based training could then more readily augment actual aircraft flying (training) time. This paper presents the technology need and opportunity to create a new class of immersive simulator- trainer systems having some 210 million pixels characterized especially by a 20-20 visual acuity synthetic vision system having some 150 million pixels. The same new display technology base is needed for planned crew stations for uninhabited combat air vehicles (UCAV), advanced aircraft cockpits and mission crewstations, and for the space plane.
This paper addresses the automotive and avionics application of cathode-ray (CRTs). Some discussion of the key attributes of displays is included. Examples of the different types of high information content displays are discussed. Automotive and avionics environments are briefly addressed. Typical CRTs and their subsystems are addressed as well as the demands that avionics environment and automotive environment contribute to a design/use trade-off analysis. The disadvantages and advantages of CRT technology in general are addressed as well as some example applications being offered in aviation and automotive vehicles.
Head-up displays (HUD) have long been used to provide pilots of military combat aircraft with information essential for the accurate aiming of weapons. By making use of evolving technologies designers have, over the years, increased the usefulness of these displays. The most modern examples of this type of display are now capable of displaying simultaneously large amounts of information including weapons release information, primary flying references, and images from sensors. The HUD is now accepted as a primary flight reference. Information and images are projected onto the combiner glass in a way that makes it unnecessary for the pilot to look away from the outside scene and re-focus on a head down display. HUDs are also viewable under all ambient lighting conditions. While the military has long used these displays, a growing number of commercial aviation managers have begun to consider the real benefits of adopting this technology. The availability of cheaper, lighter, smaller and more reliable HUDs would increase the potential market for these useful systems which can enhance safety during landing and take-off phases of flight. This paper explains the need and opportunities for the future improvement of HUDs by the insertion of advanced display technologies.
This paper addresses flat panel display test and evaluation via a discussion of procedures, standards and facilities. Procedures need to be carefully developed and documented to ensure that test accomplished in separate laboratories produce comparable results. The tests themselves must not be a source of inconsistency in test results when such comparisons are made in the course of procurements or new technology prototype evaluations. Standards are necessary to expedite the transition of the new display technologies into applications and to lower the costs of custom parts applied across disparate applications. The flat panel display industry is in the course of ascertaining and formulating such standards as they are of value to designers, manufacturers, marketers and users of civil and military products and equipment. Additionally, in order to inform the DoD and industry, the test and evaluation facilities of the Air Force Research Laboratory Displays Branch are described. These facilities are available to support procurements involving flat panel displays and to examine new technology prototypes. Finally, other government display testing facilities within the Navy and the Army are described.
Flat panel display (FPD) technologies have emerged with smaller depth, size, and power than the cathode ray tube (CRT) technology that now dominates the direct view display market. Liquid crystal displays (LCD) in general and active matrix liquid crystal displays (AMLCD), in particular, are presently the FPD technology of choice. However, the FPD and CRT markets are dominated by Asian manufacturers. Any startup FPD technology, regardless of its advantages, will encounter much difficulty to displace such entrenched, mature, and dominating display technologies. However, increasing demand for FPDs may require entirely new technologies designed to serve the same end markets. Such a new entry could leapfrog the AMLCD in FPD market share as the overall market grows. During the past few years much activity has occurred in several new FPD technologies, including field emission display (FED), that promises many advantages over AMLCD. Some observers consider the FED entry as having leapfrog potential and major investments are being made to further its advancement.This paper examines the past, present, and future of the nascent FED technology to assess its successes as well as to support or refute the claim the FED will leapfrog AMLCD and/or establish its own niche within the overall display market. Also, past projected claims by FED manufacturers about future targeted markets and product availability are reviewed. This data is compared with what is currently available from other FPD technologies, including the recent work on high gain emissive displays and vacuum fluorescent displays.
Electromechanical (EM) displays have become common in daily life. From automobiles to railway timetable displays and from advertising boards to sophisticated aerospace displays, the EM display is ever-present. This paper addresses the design, problems and supersession of EM technology. This paper covers part of the history and performance of EM displays in the high performance environment and concentrates primarily on aircraft applications.
This paper examines the use of cathode-ray tube (CRT) display technology in military and other high performance applications. The history, advantages and problems associated with this technology are reviewed. The limitations, problems and solutions experienced in the past, and currently, are considered together with the solutions being offered by new CRT technology. Examples of the demanding applications of CRTs are presented. The CRT-based technology dominates the installed high performance electronic displays, and may continue to do so for some years.
Active matrix liquid crystal displays have become the flat panel technology of choice for new cockpits as well as for retrofits of existing ones. Systems such as F-22, F-18, F-16, and C-141 have already begun extensive development efforts over the last few years. More recently, JPATS, AH-64, P-3, KC-135, T-45, and T-38 have announced plans to use AMLCDs also. Because of the advantages that AMLCDs have to offer, the list of platforms that will implement them will continue to grow over the next several years. The Displays Branch in Wright Laboratory is continually analyzing current as well as potential programs. An update on this analysis program is presented.
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