Helmet-mounted displays

[spazsinbad]

First RAAF JSF starts to come together Max Blenkin, August 23, 2012

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/b ... 6456895641

"...Mr Burbage said the test program was making good progress on fixing some problems, including making the helmet-mounted display work properly at night using the aircraft's sensors...."

[munny]

Nice video of the F-35 display and helmet. View it in HD and full screen.

http://www.viddler.com/v/eebd59ed

[spazsinbad]

Looks like the same video mentioned here for the second time:

"Thanks - that video looks similar to the one mentioned earlier on another thread:

http://www.f-16.net/f-16_forum_viewtopi ... art-0.html (stroll down to):

Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II stealth fighter cockpit demonstrator hands-on (video) By Zach Honig posted Jul 11th 2012

http://www.engadget.com/2012/07/11/lock ... -hands-on/

[munny]

Well I bet ya haven't posted this one yet

Fluff piece from VSI.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_NpIqft2ZF0

[spazsinbad]

I'm No.5 - that's quick. Thanks.

[spazsinbad]

I weep for SLDinfo and there (deliberate) lack of proof reading and spelling ability. It is shocking.

Evolving the Life Support System for the F-35 By Robbin Laird Whenever September 2012

http://www.sldinfo.com/evolving-the-lif ... -the-f-35/

"...With the new helmet, the approach is to integrate the systems.

The challenge, of course, is to get the integration right.

This means as well that the new challenge will be to maintain the integrated helmet, rather than piece repairs.

This poses its own challenge as the pilots are fitted with an interrelated helmet which is uniquely his or hers. How do you fly if your helmet is not working?

One alternative over time might be to have a backup helmet, but more plausibly, the ability to repair an integrated helmet will evolve over time with the input from top Aircrew Flight Equipment technicians like TSgt Baskin and SSgt Velasquez.

TSgt. Baskin: “Instead of attaching mission specific devices to the helmet, the F-35 helmet has the key elements fully incorporated; one example would be night vision capability. The helmet essentially pulls up the sensor data from the jet and allows the pilot to focus more effectively on his tasks and avoid cockpit distractions.

When you fly with a legacy helmet, you have to wear earplugs. With the new helmet you don’t. It has active noise reduction incorporated in the helmet. It basically reduces all the noise all around them, so they can focus on what’s coming through inside this aircraft.

And each pilot has their own helmet.

The sizing process is actually laser scanned, so once it’s fit to them, it’s their helmet and their helmet only.

There’s no swapping helmets among pilots...."

Best read at sauce (deliberate mispelin) sargent.

[spazsinbad]

More problems raised at Pentagon F-35 fighter review 10 Sep 2012 By Andrea Shalal-Esa

http://uk.reuters.com/article/2012/09/1 ... EstateNews

"...The Pentagon's Defense Acquisition Board huddled for more than four hours on Friday evening in a meeting described by one participant as "very painful" given ongoing challenges facing the high-tech F-35 helmet that is integral to the craft's weapons systems.

Marine Corps Commandant General James Amos told Reuters in an interview on Saturday that he had not been briefed on Friday's review meeting, but said he was closely following work on the helmet, since its completion was needed to allow operational use of the new jets.

"The helmet is a critical piece that needs to be solved," Amos said, noting that the Marines urgently needed the short takeoff, vertical landing (STOVL) version of the plane to replace their aging fighter jets, which include older model F/A-18 Hornets built by Boeing Co..

The Marine Corps had hoped to become the first military service to start using the new F-35B jets this year, but a series of program restructurings has pushed that date back several years.

If the helmet being developed by Vision Systems International (VSI), a joint venture between Israel's Elbit Imaging and Rockwell Collins succeeds, it will be the most advanced ever built.

It is supposed to let pilots see data from all the plane's sensors, effectively allowing the pilot to look right through the floor of the plane and all around it. But the project has run into problems with night vision, delays in displaying the data and a green glow at the visor's edges. [OH NO! The GREEN HORNET BUG?]

Lockheed Martin has brought in an alternate contractor, BAE Systems to work on a substitute helmet in case the VSI helmet does not meet its deadlines. Current F-35 program manager Navy Admiral David Venlet is meeting with BAE officials during a trip to Europe this week.

Lockheed has also agreed to provide an F-35 jet for dedicated testing of the helmet in coming weeks, the sources said. "These kinds of challenges are normal in a developmental program," Steve O'Bryan, a Lockheed executive, said...."

This excerpt is JUST ABOUT THE HMDS issues - another thread has the gist of the meeting elsewhere.

[neurotech]

This may be repetitive, but I can't figure out why VSI/Rockwell/Elbit are having such a problem with the helmet itself. Elbit have successfully integrated combined display/targeting helmets to the F-15I & F-16I and Elbit also make EVS systems. Rockwell Collins makes the EVS fitted to the G550 which is one of the best civilian systems out there. One clue to this SNAFU is that the F-35 uses electro-optical and electro-magnetic tracking, but other systems use gyroscopic tracking.

One thing that curiously comes to mind, is that the Integrated Core Processor(ICP) is a PowerPC based system with no real GPU acceleration. Cray and IBM have tested PowerPC chips with AMD/ATI Firestream Processors, and they work quite well. From what I've been able to find out, the F-35 ICP is made by L3 and only has a relatively basic GPU for display output fitted. CPU-Only processing for the F-35 might explain why they have issues with lag, and tracking.

[neptune]

[quote="neurotech"]This may be repetitive,...ditto..PCIe x16 2.0 ... quote]

I obviously don't know the architecture/design but as nt indicated loading the main processor with graphics is a slower road.

[cola]

...but I can't figure out why VSI/Rockwell/Elbit are having such a problem with the helmet itself.

Indeed.
BAe seems to have solved it.
http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-19372299

[SpudmanWP]

1. That article made no mention of latency or lag
2. Let's see them put in a fighter with all the sensor fusion going with a video feed displaying (of the same resolution) at zero lag and then you claim they solved it.

[cola]

Well I don't know, but Striker operationally flies in RAF and Luftwaffe begun adopting it as well, so I'd assume various (including latency) problems have been solved, when helmet got cleared for use.
I don't think MoD would let RAF boys fly the plane if the latency was large enough to compromise safe handling of the plane.
Got nothing more on the subject, though. Do you?

[spazsinbad]

AFAIK the LM F-35 test pilots have not used the alternate helmet from BAE so far. They like what they have in the HMDS II and will be patient to see it fixed as soon as. Below is an old 2006 article which has info on both helmets and how they differ (bear in mind since then changes may have been made).

Helmet Mounted Displays: Adding Night Vision Sept 1, 2006 by John Croft

"Next-generation pilot head gear, in the form of helmet mounted displays, will paint a wealth of information, including night vision imaging, onto a pilot's visor, yielding tactical advantage"

http://www.aviationtoday.com/av/issue/f ... _1105.html

[batu731]

This may be repetitive, but I can't figure out why VSI/Rockwell/Elbit are having such a problem with the helmet itself. Elbit have successfully integrated combined display/targeting helmets to the F-15I & F-16I and Elbit also make EVS systems. Rockwell Collins makes the EVS fitted to the G550 which is one of the best civilian systems out there. One clue to this SNAFU is that the F-35 uses electro-optical and electro-magnetic tracking, but other systems use gyroscopic tracking.

One thing that curiously comes to mind, is that the Integrated Core Processor(ICP) is a PowerPC based system with no real GPU acceleration. Cray and IBM have tested PowerPC chips with AMD/ATI Firestream Processors, and they work quite well. From what I've been able to find out, the F-35 ICP is made by L3 and only has a relatively basic GPU for display output fitted. CPU-Only processing for the F-35 might explain why they have issues with lag, and tracking.

I can't imagine jet like F-35 lacking of floating point power , it must be something more hidden as the problem has been around for quit a few years.

[cola]

Thx, spaz.