Helmet mounted display flight symbology research

Abstract

Screen/head stabilized MIL-STD 1295 helmet mounted display (HMD) flight symbology as integrated on the Apache helicopter was compared to world referenced/stabilized flight symbology. Simulation test results indicate that pilots perform significantly better using world-stabilized conformal attitude symbology. They were accurate to an average of 1/2 degree at estimating terrain relief and aerial target locations. World stabilized conformal symbology was preferred while performing contour flight tasks. They reported that the use of climb-dive-marker during contour flight greatly reduced pilot work load under conditions tested. Cyclic input errors occurred when using both 1295 hover symbology and test symbology indicating that a better approach for depicting hover symbology is warranted. The magnitude of cyclic input and spatial estimation errors increased as the off-axis viewing angle became larger.