Army UAS TADSS Strategy
Written by Erin Flynn Jay
MT2 2011 Volume: 16 Issue: 5 (August)
With the possibility of a troop drawdown and U.S. soldiers returning home, it will be necessary for the Army to maintain the highest level of fidelity on their training systems. The services will depend heavily on their training systems to maintain the level of proficiency required for the next fight.
The Army’s training aids, devices, simulations and simulators (TADSS) provide commanders with a training capability that augments live training. “The Army’s UAS TADSS strategy supports training from qualification on UAS during institutional training through crew and unit collective training,” said Robert Sova, U.S. Army TRADOC manager for UAS. “The UAS TADSS strategy provides high fidelity training at low-cost, low-risk, and reduced resources required to conduct training. During initial training for UAS operators and maintainers at Fort Huachuca Ariz., TADSS are used to enhance training and prepare soldiers to perform in the live environment.”
Future UAS operators are required to complete a simulator module prior to conducting training with live equipment. “Operators receive 60-70 hours of simulation using the Institutional Mission Simulator (IMS),” said Sova. “The IMS is also used when weather conditions prevent live flight or when individual soldiers require remedial training on certain tasks.”
Army UAS TADSS Strategy
Once soldiers arrive at their assigned unit, embedded simulation within the Ground Control Station (GCS) is used as the primary training tool. However, Sova said there are times when a unit is without its organic training devices as they either await initial equipment fielding or as equipment is reset following a deployment. In these instances, a “Portable” IMS is temporarily provided by the UAS program manager’s office, which enables units to continue simulation training. TADSS in support of maintainer training consists of non-flyable live equipment.
“One of our priorities this past year has been to continue developing our capability to conduct collective training, training with other manned aviation and ground systems. All UAS simulators and embedded GCS simulations will be interoperable with other Army collective simulation devices and integrated into the Combined Arms Tactical Trainer [CATT] family of simulators,” said Sova. “This includes the Aviation Combined Arms Tactical Trainer [AVCATT]. The Directorate of Simulation [DOS] at the United States Army Aviation Center of Excellence [USAACE] completed several key milestones this past year towards our goal of fully integrating UAS into collective training events.”
One of the continuing challenges with simulation is keeping up with software changes to the actual system. “This is no different for us in the Army UAS community. A priority for the Joint System Integration Lab [JSIL] is to keep our simulation systems concurrent with actual systems and is an area that we must continue to improve,” Sova said. “We must also improve in the area of computer-based and interactive multimedia instruction while also maintaining the highest possible level of system fidelity.”
The Army’s best resource for providing feedback on their training systems is the soldiers who operate and maintain them. The Army has been, and continues to be, diligent at seeking out feedback from their operators. Lessons learned from soldiers on the ground in Afghanistan and Iraq are regularly captured and acted on to improve our training systems. “One example of this is the ability to develop tactical scenarios using the Vignette Planning and Rehearsal system (ViPRS) created by the JSIL. This tool has enabled us to capture those lessons our units have learned through numerous deployments from which relevant tactical simulation scenarios are developed,” Sova said. “The JSIL is currently building a repository of these scenarios which can then be shared across the Joint community.”
Sova’s office is currently working on a requirements document that will take them to their next generation simulator in support of the Universal Ground Control Station (UGCS). “Our goal is to have a simulator that supports Shadow, Gray Eagle and Hunter. With the possibility of a troop drawdown and soldiers returning to home station, it will be necessary to maintain the highest level of fidelity on our training systems,” Sova said. “The Army, along with our sister services, continues to work through training issues associated with UAS integration into the national airspace; however, we will depend heavily on our training systems to enable us to maintain the level of proficiency required for the next fight.”
The most recent release occurred in May 2011 for the Shadow Maintenance Trainer (SMT). The SMT will provide a complete suite of training devices in support of the UAS maintainer training starting in second quarter, FY12, Sova concluded. The PM UAS will release an RFP within the next 60 days for Universal Mission Simulator in support of the UGCS, which will begin fielding in FY13.
MetaVR’s VRSG
MetaVR is the largest supplier of unmanned aerial system commercial 3-D visualization software for the U.S. military with over 1,000 active Virtual Reality Scene Generator (VRSG) licenses in the field. Much of this installed base is through the Multiple Unified Simulation Environment/Air Force Synthetic Environment for Reconnaissance and Surveillance (MUSE/AFSERS) simulation system.
“VRSG drives the visuals for MUSE/AFSERS, which is the primary UAS training and simulation system used in the Department of Defense for command- and staff-level joint services training,” said W. Garth Smith, MetaVR co-founder and chief executive officer.
MetaVR visual systems are used in multiple UAS programs, including the embedded Shadow Crew Trainer One System Ground Control Station, which is used for training Shadow TUAS, Hunter, Aerosonde, and Grey Eagle unmanned aerial systems. Insitu Inc. uses 34 MetaVR VRSG licenses for simulation training of one of its UASs.
Smith said VRSG can be configured to simulate a UAS in a variety of ways. These configurations range from using VRSG’s internal camera payload model in which the telemetry of the simulated UAV is provided by a DIS or HLA entity, to fully integrated applications such as the MUSE UAV tactical trainer. VRSG UAS simulation features include:
- Capturing high-resolution virtual world screen images remotely. VRSG can instruct the UAV camera to capture the current image in its field of view from remote operators in the simulation environment, save the image to a file, and deliver the file for display on another computer. This feature simulates the Global Hawk large image sensor capability.
- Using VRSG as a simulated, live, virtual video feed from a UAV that is used to classify ground information from a Geographical Situational Display. Airborne or space-borne collection systems that use Ground Moving Target Indication (GMTI) and target identification devices create symbolic representations of moving entities over large geographic areas. VRSG enables the operator to refine target identification and classification.
In the past year, much work at MetaVR has been placed into the advancement of sensor effects to more realistically represent the video degradation experienced by UAV operators. “We have improved VRSG’s depth-of-field simulation based on feedback from subject matter experts of sensor optics. Multiple levels of sensor noise are now possible in VRSG. Sensor noise arising from pre-datalink sources and post-datalink sources can now be independently controlled,” Smith said. “Sensor washout effects resulting from overexposure and dynamic range saturation are also now simulated. VRSG video streaming capability (simulating the UAV camera payload) can now stream H.264 video with multiplexed MISB 104.5 or EG601 KLV metadata standards.”
A trend that MetaVR has seen is the convergence of several unmanned platforms to use a single ground control station for controlling the unmanned systems. “The universal ground control station is used for the Shadow, Hunter, Aerosonde and Grey Eagle UAVs, and most recently for the Long Endurance Multi- Intelligence Vehicle [LEMV],” said Smith. “MetaVR 3-D real-time visuals are used as a component of the embedded training system for the UGCS. So we are seeing growth in the UAV simulation training market as more and more unmanned systems standardize on using the UGCS.”
MetaVR recently released VRSG version 5.7. In addition to the sensor and videos streaming enhancements described above, this version includes support for version 2.4 of the MUSE Visualization Interface Description Document (VIDD) and improvements to VRSG’s RADAR model to better support high-resolution SAR imaging required by UAV platforms, Smith concluded.
L-3 Link’s PMATS Solution
Since 2005, L-3 Link has been prime contractor for the U.S. Air Force’s Predator Mission Aircrew Training System (PMATS) program, which provides training for pilots and sensor operators that operate the MQ-1 Predator and MQ-9 Reaper. By the third quarter of 2011 L-3 Link will have installed 26 PMATS units that are dispersed between U.S. Air Force, Air National Guard and Air Force Special Operations Command installations in addition to the program’s Training Systems Support Center located at their Binghamton, N.Y., operation.
“Our PMATS solution integrates an actual General Atomics ground control station with L-3 Link’s simulation software and visual system databases to create a fully immersive, high-fidelity environment for both pilots and sensor operators,” said Jeff Schram, a director of business development within L-3 Link. “This training system supports initial qualification, mission qualification, continuation and mission rehearsal training. Each PMATS unit simulates aircraft performance, weapons, sensors, communications, datalink operations, emergencies, degraded video feeds and environmental conditions.”
The use of PMATS to train Predator and Reaper crews in recent years has underscored how fully immersive simulation for the UAS community has the same value and merit as it always has had for the manned aircraft market segment.
In recent years, Schram said Link provided a number of PMATS program initiatives that have enhanced training capability and supported the U.S. Air Force’s plans to meet its MQ-1 Predator and MQ-9 Reaper force training requirements.
In respect to new initiatives, earlier this year L-3 Link teamed with the University of North Dakota to open a UAS training center, the first non-military UAS educational institution in the U.S. to provide Predator and Reaper aircrew training. “We began our teaming relationship with UND in order to expand our UAS training capabilities with a leading university in UAS research, training and education. In support of the UAS Training Center, L-3 Link is providing instructors, course development and training for pilots and sensor operators,” Schram said.
L-3 Link provides a high-fidelity simulator, minus weapons, based on their PMATS design. Initial customers will be UND students and, potentially, MQ-9 users like the U.S. Customs and Border Protection. “We intend to expand our capability in North Dakota to include other platforms with a full menu of training capability to meet the needs of this emerging market,” Schram said.
Today sensor fidelity and accurate flight models are being emphasized by UAS military customers with the goal to create an environment that supports qualifications of both pilots and sensor operators while allowing for a large reduction in live flight training.
Future UAS training will require a total immersive environment that will make it difficult to discern from actual flight of the platform. “With this type of environment nearly all training—from initial to recurrent— will be flown in simulation,” Schram said. “This will allow complex scenario development and persistent training capability. Integration with the entire battle space will be the norm.”
Also in the not-too-distant future, systems will be able to perceive a situation and act independently with limited or little human input, greatly shortening decision time. To some degree, Schram said, we’re seeing this today with UAS.
Today humans remain “in the loop” as it regards UAS operations, but in 10 years UAS operators could be “on the loop” as they monitor the execution of decisions made by UAS systems integrated with advancements in artificial intelligence, Schram predicted.
With systems more capable and autonomous, the exact training required is evolving to meet the demands of an ever increasing number of operators.
There will continue to be a strong focus on increasing the training capability to offset the time required to fly a live vehicle. “Enhancements over the short term will continue to march down the path of providing incremental improvements that allow for an offset of flight time, honing in on the specific needs of the user to qualify and remain qualified in the platform,” Schram concluded. “Accurate sensor fidelity operating in realistic, dense scenarios that reflect live missions are the focus of most near-term enhancements.”
AAI ’s SCT Device
AAI Test & Training provides a comprehensive, highfidelity training device for the Shadow tactical unmanned aircraft system (TUAS). This is the workhorse TUAS for the U.S. Army and National Guard, logging more than 630,000 total flight hours to date. “Our Shadow Crew Trainer [SCT] is a mission-level training device, enabling users to train on their specific roles, as well as team-level communication and mission rehearsal,” said Jesse Hyman, program manager for AAI Corporation.
The SCT includes: an instructor/operator station, two stations for ground control station (GCS) training, a staff/leader role player station and a launch/recovery training station. “The dual GCS allow users to coordinate the handoff required during launch/recovery. The instructor can work with the other users to simulate pre-flight activities, train on fault scenarios and capture crew performance for after-action review,” said Hyman. “The SCT can be housed in a climate-controlled trailer or a classroom configuration.”
AAI Test & Training has delivered 16 systems to the National Guard to date, which are deployed across the United States. An additional nine systems are built and being readied for deployment, and three more systems are on order.
The most significant enhancement to the AAI Test & Training SCT is its June 2011 accreditation by the U.S. Army Aviation Center Directorate of Simulation. In the future, Hyman said this will enable users to log SCT hours as flight hours toward their overall requirements for system training.
Central to this accreditation is the recent integration of the U.S. Army Joint Technology Center/System Integration Laboratory (JTC/SIL) Multiple Unified Simulation Environment training system with the SCT. This system upgrade includes a MUSEenhanced instructor/operator station, and allows the SCT to utilize MUSE for Shadow aircraft, Tactical Automatic Landing System and Ground Data Terminal simulation. Together, Hyman said these enhancements aid in concurrency with the Shadow TUAS.
Recent additional Shadow TUAS performance upgrades such as laser designation capability and the new, extended wing also have been made concurrent in the SCT simulation.
Technology trends are really driven by customer requirements. “Our customers are focused on solutions that cover every element of the learning cycle— classroom, Internet or remote training, and hands-on training,” said Hyman. “The solutions we deliver need to be holistic, and most of all, they need to be current—that remains the most important requirement for both manned and unmanned aircraft training devices.”
In the near term, Hyman concluded, the 16 currently deployed systems will be upgraded in accordance with the enhancements described above. Longer-term, AAI and the JTC SIL will continue working together closely to maintain SCT concurrence in tandem with the latter’s biannual cadence of MUSE upgrades. Another ongoing goal is to achieve even more seamless integration of the MUSE system into the SCT. ♦