Human Performance Modeling and Decision Analysis in a Concept Crew Workstation

Abstract

As part of the effort to evaluate the performance of soldiers operating in the Vetronics Testbed Technology (VTT), a human performance model of operator processes and tasks was developed. The purpose of this effort was to gather insight into operator workload constraints, points of operator overload due to task demands, and key decision-making points and strategies employed by the operators. Operator performance was modeled when the operators were confronted with the task of controlling multiple experimental unmanned ground vehicles (XUV) in addition to performing standard Command and Control (C2) operations. The model was built using the Improved Performance Research Integration Tool (IMPRINT). Development began with a task decomposition of the current VTT system and operator control unit (OCU) and was decomposed to the button-push level of operator interaction with the unit. Next, several operational scenarios were developed to drive the simulated operator actions in the OCU and obtain measures of performance. Finally, a decision-making architecture was implemented in the model to examine points where intelligent agents and system automation could potentially aid in reducing operator cognitive demands.