Importance of Evaluating Effectiveness of Head-up Displays for Weapon Platforms

US Army Research Laboratory researchers designed a head-up display (HUD) that overlays driving information on a switchable vision block. Bradley and Stryker drivers were surveyed for recommendations to incorporate in the prototype. A simulation experiment was conducted to evaluate a HUD versus a traditional head-down display (HDD). Results about driving task performance were mixed, with the HUD associated with poorer performance in some measures and the HDD with others. Participants detected significantly more roadside improvised explosive devices (IEDs) with the HDD than with the HUD; they also detected the IEDs from a farther distance with the HDD than with the HUD. However, participants’ gauge monitoring performance was better with the HUD than with the HDD. The WSTIAC Journal, Volume 11, Number 1 3 http://wstiac.alionscience.com http://wstiac.alionscience.com/quarterly J.Y.C. Chen