Engineering Commons^™

The Effectiveness Of Pilot Response To Generate Concatenated Downlink Messages After Evaluation Of Hybrid Graphic-Text Clearances, Steven Brent Kiss

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Data-Link Communication, or DataComm, is a digital text messaging system providing a means of communication between Air Traffic Control (ATC) and pilots. Current Pilot/ATC communication is via voice radio, but the number of ATC operators and voice channels are finite, which limits the number of aircraft voice transmission can accommodate. The number of aircraft within the National Airspace System (NAS) is expected to double between 2004 and 2025, and a transition from voice to DataComm is a necessity. DataComm is an integral part of the NAS and is implemented in incremental phases increasing its functions and capability. There are many …

Utility Of A Volume-Regulated Drive System For Direct Mechanical Ventricular Actuation, Benjamin A. Schmitt

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Direct Mechanical Ventricular Actuation (DMVA) is a non-blood contacting cardiac assist device that augments ventricular function. The purpose of this study was to determine if a volume-regulated "hand pump" drive system and a pressure-regulated "switch tank" drive system provide equivalent levels of cardiac support. Canine (n=2) and swine (n=4) were instrumented for hemodynamic monitoring and intravascular echocardiography. DMVA support was assessed during both severe heart failure and fibrillation. Pump function was evaluated using hemodynamic measures to calculate stroke work. Myocardial function was assessed using echocardiographic speckle tracking to quantify strain rate. Results were compared between groups using paired t-tests. There …

An Investigation Of Thermal Imaging To Detect Physiological Indicators Of Stress In Humans, Carl Brady Cross

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Real-time, stand-off sensing of humans to detect emotional state would be valuable in many defense, security and medical scenarios. Using a multimodal sensor platform that incorporates high-resolution visible-wavelength and mid-wave infrared cameras and a millimeter-wave (mmW) radar system, the detection of physiological indicators of psychological stress is tested through laboratory experiments. Our approach focuses on thermal imaging to measure temperature patterns in distinct facial regions representative of underlying hemodynamic patterns. Experiments were designed to: 1) determine the ability of thermal imaging to detect high levels of psychological stress and assess responses to physical versus psychological stressors; 2) evaluate the fidelity …

Evaluating The E-Consult Process For Diabetes Care Delivery At An Outpatient Care Clinic, Brian M. Zoll

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The occurrence of one of the most common chronic conditions in the U.S., diabetes, is expected to rise 53% from 24 million cases in 2003 to 37 million cases in 2023. The U.S. Veterans Health Administration (VHA) is not immune to this. The VHA has experienced an $820 million increase spending on diabetes patients between 2000 and 2008. The VHA has tried to keep the growth of chronic care costs in check through improvements in patient access to care by expanding its network of community-based outpatient clinics. Other methods the VHA has used to curb chronic care spending costs are …

Investigation Of The Utility Of Center Frequency In Electroencephalographic Classification Of Cognitive Workload Transitions, Jones Melissa

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Successful classification of human cognitive workload is a vital component in identifying and avoiding potential performance deficits resulting from operator work overload. Previous research suggests that electroencephalogram (EEG) derived features, including center frequency, provide a robust signal which may be used to obtain highly accurate workload classification. The purpose of this work is to investigate evidence of physiological hysteresis and determine if center frequency improves a classifier's ability to correctly identify workload level. Results confirmed that including spectral data creates the most robust feature sets, while center frequency across all bands is equally reliable for classifying workload in the case …

The Effects Of Text And Hybrid Graphic-Text Formats On Pilot Performance Using Flight Deck Data Communication Displays, Ricardo Daniel Muñoz Da Costa

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Air Traffic has shown a steady increase since the institution of commercial aviation in the first quarter of the last century, and the use of the United States National Airspace System (NAS) is expected to increase by 45 percent more passengers by the year 2015 (Smith, 2004). The increasing demands of the NAS require preventive measures in order to preserve the safety of operations. NextGen is a transformative program expected to enhance the safety and effectiveness of NAS operations. One of the ways that it will achieve these goals is by improving air-ground communications.

In the current system, communications between …

Mobile Computing For Trauma And Surgical Care Continuous Education, Muhammad Y. Alamoud

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In medical domain, mobile computing has proven to be convenient, effective, and productive. With varying screen sizes, there is a challenge to present the right information in the right format such that medical practitioners can access information quickly. In this thesis, we discuss how mobile computing can be used as a way of continuous education for medical practitioners in the field of trauma and surgical care, and provide design guidelines on how to effectively present information on different mobile form factors. The focus is on three screen sizes- 4.7, 7 and 10.1 in., and three interaction methods - dropdown, slide, …

Assessing The Effects Of Multi-Modal Communications On Mental Workload During The Supervision Of Multiple Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, Sharon Claxton Bommer

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Human supervisory control (HSC) systems that require intermittent human input of commands to create actions within the system are helpful in reducing the human's mental workload (MWL). HSC systems are commonly employed in the piloting and control of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). As the ratio of UAVs to operators increases there is a clear need to understand the effort required to complete task requirements. Specifically, this research explored MWL relative to multi-modal communications using subjective and physiological measures. To accomplish this, a cognitive model was developed to understand the relationship between tasks and MWL. MWL was manipulated by measuring three …

Application Of The Augmented Operator Function Model For Developing Performance Metrics In Persistent Surveillance, Tiffany M. Paul

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Difficulties with the implementation of persistent Wide Area Motion Imagery (WAMI) sensors to support real-time military missions have risen within Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance organizations. In this study, cognitive models were developed of operators performing real-time missions currently supported by narrow field of view Full Motion Video (FMV) and WAMI sensors. These models were used in conjunction with a cognitive task analysis, creating an augmented operator function model (OFM-COG). This thesis describes the OFM-COG and demonstrates how this model-based analysis technique can document the cognitive implications of persistent surveillance with motion imagery. The analytic procedures required to build this model …