THE INFLUENCE OF TACTUAL SEAT-MOTION CUES ON TRAINING AND PERFORMANCE IN A ROLL-AXIS COMPENSATORY TRACKING TASK SETTING (G-SEAT)

A considerable body of knowledge exists regarding the influence of whole-body motion on the control behavior and task performance of a vehicle operator required to compensate for the effects of unexpected external disturbances. The research described was conducted to determine whether similar effects would be observed if the motion information were tactually displayed through the seat pan, rather than in a whole-body motion environment. The experiment was designed such that the transfer of training from a tactual dynamic seat display to a whole-body motion environment could also be evaluated.;The two-phase experiment included a training phase and a criterion phase. During training, subjects tracked under conditions of either visual information only, visual plus tactual seat cues, visual in the criterion one-to-one motion environment. Following training, all subjects were transitioned into the criterion whole-body motion environment. Data collected late in the training phase were used to evaluate the effectiveness of the tactual display. The criterion phase provided data for the evaluation of the transfer of training.;The data clearly demonstrate that a dynamic seat pan can effectively impart motion information. It appears that a tactual display of this type could be useful in research and development simulators or for communicating motion information to the operator of a vehicle. The results of the training transfer portion of this study were not so encouraging, however. These indicated that the dynamic seat used in this investigation was not adequate for training inexperienced subjects to properly interpret and use the motion information available in the whole-body motion environment.;The environmental task required subjects to regulate for a random-appearing, roll-axis disturbance in a simulated vehicle having aircraft-like dynamics. A centrally located compensatory display, subtending about nine degrees, provided visual roll error information. Control inputs were made via a right side-arm isometric controller.