The ability to remotely operate an unmanned vehicle while simultaneously looking for suspicious targets and then classifying those targets is not a trivial skill. This study looked at different training approaches to make better use of simulation as a first training step. When transferring to a live environment, the operators could be grouped into two categories according to whether they passed live training criteria or not. There were clear performance differences between these groups. The group that failed to pass criteria had poorer performance overall, more SA errors, and spent more time in training. Post-hoc analysis showed differences in the demographics between those who passed and those that did not. Male participants and younger participants were more likely to achieve criteria. There were no differences in gaming experience and perceived sense of direction.

This paper investigates the impact of framing and time pressure on human judgment performance in a complex multiattribute judgment task. We focus on the decision process of human participants who must choose between pairwise alternatives in a resource-allocation task. We used the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) to calculate the relative weights of the four alternatives (i.e.,${\rm C}_{1}$,${\rm C}_{2}$,${\rm C}_{3}$, and${\rm C}_{4}$) and the judgment consistency. Using the AHP, we examined two sets of hypotheses that address the impact of task conditions on the weight prioritization of choice alternatives and the internal consistency of the judgment behavior under varying task conditions. The experiment simulated the allocation of robotic assets across the battlefield to collect data about an enemy. Participants had to make a judgment about which asset to allocate to a new area by taking into account three criteria related to the likelihood of success. We manipulated the information frame and the nature of the task. We found that, in general, participants gave significantly different weights to the same alternatives under different frames and task conditions. Specifically, in terms of ln-transformed priority weights, participants gave significantly lower weights to${\rm C}_{2}$and${\rm C}_{4}$and higher weight to${\rm C}_{3}$under gain frame than under loss frame, and also, under different task conditions (i.e., Tasks #1, #2, and #3), participants gave significantly higher weight to${ \rm C}_{4}$in Task #1, lower weights to${\rm C}_{1}$and${\rm C}_{4}$, higher weight to${\rm C}_{3}$in Task #2, and lower weight to${\rm C}_{3}$in Task #3. Furthermore, we found that the internal consistency of the decision behavior was worse, first, in the loss frame than the gain frame and, second, under time pressure. Our methodology complements utility-theoretic frameworks by assessing judgment consistency without requiring the use of task-performance outcomes. This work is a step toward establishing a coherence criterion to investigate judgment under naturalistic conditions. The results will be useful for the design of multiattribute interfaces and decision aiding tools for real-time judgments in time-pressured task environments.

The implications of bandwidth allocation are described for teleoperation in a military task that involved navigation, target detection, and target identification. Color versus grayscale imagery was manipulated. Participants themselves traded off resolution and frame rate settings. Participants minimized switching between resolution/frame rate settings and tended to use settings with high resolution/low frame rate. Courses completed with the highest resolution (and lowest frame rate) had the fastest target identification times, but no other differences were observed between settings. Color imagery offered advantages for overall course time and the time to identify a tank as friendly or enemy.

Robots are already being used in a variety of applications, including the military battlefield. As robotic technology continues to advance, those applications will increase, as will the demands on the associated network communication links. Two experiments investigated the effects of communication latency on the control of a robot across four Levels Of Automation (LOAs), (1) full teleoperation, (2) guarded teleoperation, (3) autonomous obstacle avoidance, and (4) full autonomy. Latency parameters studied included latency duration, latency variability, and the "direction" in which the latency occurs, that is from user-to-robot or from robot-to-user. The results indicate that the higher the LOA, the better the performance in terms of both time and number of errors made, and also the more resistant to the degrading effects of latency. Subjective reports confirmed these findings. Implications of constant vs. variable-latency, user-to-robot vs. robot-to-user latency, and latency duration are also discussed.

An approach to conduct systematic analysis of risk visualization strategies in a homeland missile defense context is presented. The approach consists of three phases which take different perspectives toward characterizing the problems of resource management and allocation for defense against missile attacks. Decision makers in missile defense are supervisory controllers of highly automated and resource-constrained systems. Our approach is suggested as a method to assess the effectiveness of visualization strategies in a dynamic decision environment. The three phases of our approach included a test for subject utility preferences, a text for subject multi-attribute prefences using the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP), and a test for subject action selection using a human-in-the-loop simulation test bed. Our approach is proposed to systematically evaluate the effectiveness of multistage decision making strategies against immediate and delayed threats. The alternatives were calculated based on expected cases of lives lost as a result of attacks on defended areas. Implementation of the test bed enabled us to investigate the effect of visualization formats on decision behaviour. Some preliminary results based on a pilot study will be presented. The implications of our study extend beyond missile defense. In a world where catastrophic loss of civilian lives is seen by some as a victory, those entrusted with homeland security must effectively manage limited resources to combat terrorist activities. Effective visualization formats will help to promote decision that are informed with respect to the risks and outcomes.