Report Published By Dublin-Based Research Firm

Dublin-based Research and Markets (R&M), a company specializing in global market research for key industries, top companies and new products, has released a report detailing the efficacy of simulator technology for use in flight training.

According to R&M, advances in computer, visual display, motion and force cueing and other technologies in the past two decades have had a dramatic effect on the design and use of simulation technology in aviation and other fields.

In its report, the company claims the effective use of technology in training, safety investigation, engineering and scientific research requires an understanding of its capabilities and limitations. And since users of the technology have as a primary goal the creation of virtual environments for human trainees, knowledge of human sensory, perceptual, and cognitive functioning is critical.

R&M's report provides a review and analysis of the relevant engineering and science supporting the design and use of advanced flight simulation technologies. The report addresses how physical and psychological fidelity in simulator design affects their design and use.

Further, the report touches on the problems inherent in the ground-based simulation of flight and covers promising developments in flight simulation technology and the important role flight simulators play in advanced aviation research.

R&M lists among those who might be interested in this report as flight simulation engineers and designers, human factors researchers and practitioners, aviation safety investigators, flight training management and instructors, training and instructional technologists, the virtual environment design community, and regulatory authorities.

The report also addresses the following topics:

• Visual scene simulation
• Sound effects and communications simulation
• Whole body motion
• Handling qualities and control loading
• Cognitive fidelity and the simulator task environment
• Flight simulators in pilot training and evaluation
• Simulator fidelity and training effectiveness
• Limitations in flight simulator design and use
• Advances in flight simulation
• Flight simulation in research

FMI: www.researchandmarkets.com