Human Systems Integration of an Extravehicular Activity Space Suit Augmented Reality Display System
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Mississippi State University Scholars Junction Theses and Dissertations Theses and Dissertations 1-1-2018 Human Systems Integration of an Extravehicular Activity Space Suit Augmented Reality Display System Paromita Mitra Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarsjunction.msstate.edu/td Recommended Citation Mitra, Paromita, "Human Systems Integration of an Extravehicular Activity Space Suit Augmented Reality Display System" (2018). Theses and Dissertations. 2517. https://scholarsjunction.msstate.edu/td/2517 This Graduate Thesis - Open Access is brought to you for free and open access by the Theses and Dissertations at Scholars Junction. It has been accepted for inclusion in Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Scholars Junction. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Template C v3.0 (beta): Created by J. Nail 06/2015 Human systems integration of an extravehicular activity space suit augmented reality display system By TITLE PAGE Paromita Mitra A Thesis Submitted to the Faculty of Mississippi State University in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Science in Aerospace Engineering. in the Department of Aerospace Engineering. Mississippi State, Mississippi August 2018 Copyright by COPYRIGHT PAGE Paromita Mitra 2018 Human systems integration of an extravehicular activity space suit augmented reality display system By APPROVAL PAGE Paromita Mitra Approved: ____________________________________ Keith Koenig (Major Professor) ____________________________________ Gregory D. Olsen (Committee Member) ____________________________________ Cindy L. Bethel (Committee Member) ____________________________________ David S. Thompson (Graduate Coordinator) ____________________________________ Jason M. Keith Dean College of Engineering Name: Paromita Mitra ABSTRACT Date of Degree: August 10, 2018 Institution: Mississippi State University Major Field: Aerospace Engineering. Major Professor: Keith Koenig Title of Study: Human systems integration of an extravehicular activity space suit augmented reality display system Pages in Study 38 Candidate for Degree of Master of Science During an extravehicular activity (EVA), the role of an astronaut involves a multitude of complex tasks. Whether that task is a science experiment aboard the International Space Station, or traversing extraterrestrial terrain – attention, communication, and instruction are essential. As an aid, augmented reality (AR) can portray suit informatics and procedures within line-of-sight while minimizing attentional loss. Currently, there exists little research highlighting the human systems considerations to qualify AR systems for space suit applications. This study quantifies user interface (UI) and human performance measures for an AR prototype on the Mark III space suit. For user testing, 21 military pilots and personnel (11 men, 10 women) evaluated UI search tasks and completed a series of AR-instructed EVA dexterity tasks in an elevated luminosity, background clutter, and workload scenario. UI results suggest correlations for readability and usability; whereas, human performance results provide situational awareness, workload, and task performance data. DEDICATION I dedicate this Master’s Thesis to my father, Dr. Amal K. Mitra, mother, Ratna Mitra, and brother, Amlan Mitra. The opportunity to be educated as an American was granted by my incredibly hard-working family. I am forever grateful for the love and support I have received from them. ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to acknowledge and thank Dr. Keith Koenig, Dr. Cindy Bethel, and Dr. Gregory Olsen for their academic support. To Dr. Koenig, my sincerest gratitude for helping instill curiosity, a passion for aerospace, your wisdom, and providing me with this incredible graduate experience. To Dr. Bethel, thank you for maturing my interests in the field of human machine interaction. To Dr. Olsen, thank you for connecting me to my first NASA opportunity where I began this collaborative research. To the undergraduate research team, Heather Carreon, Cayla Hummel, Anna Marie Dulaney, and Johnnie Sublet – thank you so very much for all of the hard work, dedication, hours spent, and man power you gave to this research effort. Special thanks to Chris Gerty, Lucas Kinion, Christie Sauers, and the xEMU Project at NASA Johnson Space Center without whom this study would be impossible. And to my best friend, Timothy Michael McGrath – thank you for being my partner in science, motivation, and biggest support. I adore you. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS DEDICATION .................................................................................................................... ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ............................................................................................... iii LIST OF TABLES ............................................................................................................. vi LIST OF FIGURES .......................................................................................................... vii CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................1 1.1 xEMU Space Suit ......................................................................................2 II. METHODOLOGY ................................................................................................3 2.1 Objectives ..................................................................................................3 2.2 Hardware ...................................................................................................4 2.2.2 Mark III Space Suit Hard Upper Torso ...............................................5 2.2.3 Augmented Reality Hardware .............................................................6 2.2.4 Cuff Checklist ......................................................................................8 2.3 User Interface ............................................................................................8 2.3.1 User Interface Elements ......................................................................8 2.3.2 Task Procedures .................................................................................12 2.4 Human Metrics ........................................................................................12 2.4.1 Human Performance ..........................................................................13 2.4.2 Anthropometry ..................................................................................13 2.5 Test Participants ......................................................................................14 2.6 EVA Test Environment ...........................................................................15 2.7 Task Measures .........................................................................................16 2.7.1 Primary Task (Task Board) ...............................................................16 2.7.2 Secondary Task (Count-up Clock) ....................................................17 2.8 Study Protocol .........................................................................................17 2.8.1 Helmet Fit and Anthropometry .........................................................17 2.8.2 Phase A: User Interface Assessment .................................................18 2.8.3 Phase B: Human Performance Assessment .......................................19 III. METRICS AND ANALYSIS .............................................................................20 iv 3.1 Phase A: User Interface Metrics ..............................................................20 3.1.1 Readability .........................................................................................20 3.1.2 Usability ............................................................................................21 3.1.3 Open-Ended Questions ......................................................................21 3.2 Phase B: Human Performance Metrics ....................................................21 3.2.1 Workload ...........................................................................................21 3.2.2 Situational Awareness .......................................................................22 3.2.3 Time on Task .....................................................................................23 3.2.4 Task Accuracy ...................................................................................23 3.2.5 Anthropometry Metrics .....................................................................23 3.3 Analysis ...................................................................................................23 3.3.1 Data Size and Distribution .................................................................24 IV. RESULTS ............................................................................................................26 4.1 Phase A: User Interface Results ..............................................................26 4.1.1 Readability .........................................................................................26 4.1.2 Usability ............................................................................................28 4.2 Phase B: Human Performance Results ....................................................32 4.2.2 Workload ...........................................................................................32 4.2.3 Situational Awareness .......................................................................33