Brown-Out Symbology Simulation (BOSS) on the NASA Ames Vertical Motion Simulator

Different variants of new helicopter primary flight display symbology were tested in the NASA Ames Vertical Motion Simulator. The display symbology was designed to enable rotorcraft pilots to land off-airfield in poor visibility brown-out and white-out conditions. The “BOSS” displays incorporated a new speed scheduler symbol and a new rising ground/vertical speed combined symbol. For the new displays, two design issues were evaluated: 1) panel mounted vs. head mounted, 2) landing site coordinates known in 3D vs. 2D vs. unknown. In addition, all variants of the new display symbology were compared to the current AVS-7 head mounted, night vision goggle display symbology. An analysis of variance was performed on the data. The most important result was that every variant of the new symbology resulted in significantly less average vertical speed at touchdown compared to the AVS-7, by a factor of approximately two. For landing site position accuracy, there was no significant difference in 3D vs. 2D guidance, and panel vs. head mounted BOSS displays. There was significant a difference in landing site position accuracy between (3D or 2D) vs. no landing site coordinates used on the BOSS displays, by a factor of 1.5 - 2X. The recommendation is to allow pilots to choose whether or not to use speed guidance.