Modeling human pilot cue utilization with applications to simulator fidelity assessment

An analytical investigation to model the manner in which pilots perceive an d utilize visual, proprioceptive, and vestibular cues in a ground-based fli ght simulator was undertaken. Data from a NASA Ames Research Center vertica l motion simulator study of a simple, single-degree-of-freedom rotorcraft b ob-up/down maneuver were employed in the investigation. The study was part of a larger research effort that has the creation of a methodology for dete rmining flight simulator fidelity requirements as its ultimate goal. The st udy utilized a closed-loop feedback structure of the pilot/simulator system that included the pilot, the cockpit inceptor, the dynamics of the simulat ed vehicle, and the motion system. With the exception of time delays that a ccrued in visual scene production in the simulator, visual scene effects we re not included in this study. Pilot/vehicle analysis and fuzzy-inference i dentification were employed to study the changes in fidelity that occurred as the characteristics of the motion system were varied over five configura tions. The data from three of the five pilots who participated in the exper imental study were analyzed in the fuzzy-inference identification. Results indicate that both the analytical pilot/vehicle analysis and the fuzzy-infe rence identification can be used to identify changes in simulator fidelity for the task examined.