The Fire Scout
Unmanned Aerial Vehicle is an autonomous helicopter designed to be a multi-role
shipboard capable Navy asset, providing day and night real time Intelligence,
Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR), precision targeting, communication
relay and battlefield management capabilities for naval forces. The Fire Scout
has been developed along three successive variants- the RQ-8A based on the
Schweizer 330, the MQ-8B, based upon the Schweizer 333, and the newest variant,
the MQ-8C based upon the larger Bell 407 helicopter (GlobalSecurity.org, 2014).
The Fire Scout Vertical Take-Off and Landing Tactical
Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (VTUAV) can be controlled via multiple land and ship
based Ground Control Stations (GCS). The VTUAV system is capable of providing
12 continuous hours of support, with an operational range of 110 nautical miles
from the GCS. One GCS is capable of controlling up to three Fire Scout UAV’s
concurrently (GlobalSecurity.org, 2014).
The GCS for the Fire Scout MQ-8C utilizes
Commercial off the Shelf (COTS) electronics in the control stations. The
control computers are Themis Computer RES-32’s, running Sun Microsystems
Solaris as the operating system, and utilize the Sun Microsystems 1.28GHz
UltraSPARC IIIi processor and a XVR-1200 high performance graphics card, which
allows for 3-D graphics performance (McHale, 2010). “The RES-32s can be easily expanded through the addition of Sun or
other commercially available, off the shelf networking cards, I/O, peripherals
and other value-added components” (McHale, 2010). The software and protocols adhere
to STANAG 4586, a NATO standard enabling the Fire Scout to interface with other
STANAG compatible Core Unmanned Control System (CUCS) modules (Northrop
Grumman, 2009).
Fire Scout GCS utilizes “multiple radios for
voice, secondary command and control and a Tactical Common Data Link for
primary command and control and sensor data downlink” (Northrop Grumman, 2009).
Operator station are fully redundant, and the communication systems are digital
with external wireless systems for other crew member functions (Northrop
Grumman, 2009).
One negative
factor than can be associated with the Fire Scout UAV stemmed from inputs and
user feedback from its previous RQ-8A and MQ-8B variants. The vehicle operators
requested replacement of the dual screen monitors used for operations by a
single pane display that allows for more individual customization for
individual preferences and requirements. Multi-screen consoles may be more
beneficial in a training environment; however users contend that a single
customizable display is more effective in the operational arena. This is
feedback that has been taken under advisement and is being incorporated into changes
to the operator stations (McHale, 2010).
Another area that I contend is a human
factors issue is that of situational awareness and the translation of aircraft
feedback into useable data, or haptic feedback. From my research, I found no
utilization of haptic or tactile feedback in the Fire Scout system. A UAV operates in demanding environments,
however when coupled with requirements of shipboard operations, the more
feedback and data available the better equipped and prepared operators are to
safely execute the mission.
One human factors issue that is shared
between the fire Scout platform and other manned aircraft is that of
situational awareness. As with manned aircraft, visual imagery can be degraded
during adverse meteorological conditions. Both aircraft may be equipped with
sensors and equipment to assist operations in these environments, however the
loss of visual cues still limits the abilities of operators in manned and
unmanned systems.
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