New Military and Defense Flight Simulations Are Being Built on
Microsoft ESP
Throughout last fall's I/ITSEC convention (Interservice/Industry
Training, Simulation and Education Conference), one sign in
particular became a familiar one... adorning a number of high-tech
flight simulation displays -- Microsoft ESP.
The talented team behind Microsoft’s longest continuously
shipping product, Flight Simulator, has begun offering a new visual
simulation development platform for defense, civil aviation and
other industries to use in creating immersive training
simulations.
Dubbed Microsoft ESP, the platform consists of the underlying
PC-based simulation “engine” that powers Flight
Simulator, along with development tools and the rich worldwide
content that models the entire Earth. Adding to the realism are the
high-fidelity 3D visual imagery, a configurable user-adjustable
weather system, accurate vector data and geography which can be
tailored for custom solutions. To help make the Microsoft ESP a
more effective training tool, the After Action Review (AAR) feature
lets you record and review every action made during a session to
review later, and custom missions can be created to help tailor
simulations to specific training goals.
Microsoft ESP’s launch marked Microsoft’s entry into
the growing market for so-called “serious games” and
games-based learning tools which are now used around the world in a
variety of industries to train everything from helicopter pilots to
emergency responders and soldiers. To date, interest in the market
has been solid and prompted Microsoft to participate in the most
recent I/ITSEC gathering.
Amonth the benefits of Microsoft ESP, touted byy I/ITSEC
attendees was the versatility of the platform and its ability to
interact with other technologies and data, allowing for a range of
situations as well as integration with a variety of different
systems. ESP can simulate large Airbus jets down to smaller
aircrafts and integrate those with a variety of
Commercial-off-the-Shelf (COTS) software and hardware to enable the
experience.
The ability to scale down and make a simulation portable has a
variety of real-world benefits in and of itself. A pilot rerouted
to an unfamiliar airport, for example, can fire up a laptop
computer running Microsoft ESP and familiarize himself with the
airport, the landscape, the approach patterns — and fly the
approach knowing exactly what to expect. That same pilot could also
practice flying a different aircraft type by using a Microsoft
ESP-based cockpit simulation.
So... let's check out Microsoft ESP with
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