Interservice/Industry Training, Simulation & Education Conference

By Art Kalinski, GISP

The I/ITSEC (Interservice / Industry Training, Simulation & Education Conference) held in Orlando is not a GIS conference but GIS is playing an increasing role in training and simulation. With over 5,000 attendees and over 500 exhibitors this is the conference of the year for those in the training and simulation business. This is a large conference that can’t be taken in by one person so the following are some snap shots taken from a GIS perspective.

I/ITSEC demonstrated that the bar is being raised in all aspects of this multi-million dollar technology industry. The early days of training simulation was exemplified by LINK trainers which were early aircraft trainers that trained thousands of pilots during WWII. The trainers were estimated to have saved thousands of lives and millions of dollars in aircraft. Now the current generations of trainers have moved well beyond the simple stick, pedals and crude instruments that were the hallmark of the early LINK trainers but the objective is still the same. Substitute training simulators for real hardware and save lives and millions of dollars in the process.

The aircraft trainers demonstrated at I/ITSEC are as specialized and sophisticated as the aircraft they simulate. The simulators are no longer gee whiz video games. The current trainers approach realism that in some cases is indistinguishable from reality. Some simulators that were on display even simulate G forces through tactile sensations created by the seats. I tried one out and the affect was compelling but still not the real thing. If you are a video-gaming enthusiast this conference is a “Candy Store.” The hardware is absolutely real and most of the simulators use very high powered computer environments.

GIS plays an increasing role as engineers seek to create training simulators that are not only used for generic training but actual mission rehearsal. The simulators need to accurately display features, terrain, navigation and communication while also displaying different weather conditions. One can see the blurring of the line between being in an actual aircraft, being in a trainer or remotely piloting a UAV.

In the training simulation business they use the term “database” slightly differently that we do in GIS. Their database includes all the GIS type vector data of the flight environment but also includes, ground elevation models, draped imagery, 3D structure models, the objects and skins that populate the models and all the underlying physics that make the models behave realistically.

Fast accurate 3D model creation is major requirement of our military for training but increasingly more important for mission rehearsal. 3D modeling is becoming more sophisticated and robust with four vendors PLW, IAVO, Cogent3D and Clear Edge 3D approaching the “Holy Grail” of modeling, an automated process to create 3D models from ortho, oblique and ground level images with minimal human intervention.

I saw improvements in display technology, nothing really new but significant refinements. Large HD flat screens have replaced smaller LCD monitors. More air and ground simulators now use spherical and wrap around projection screens. There are also significant improvements to the imagery as they refine the optics to take full advantage of the screens and reduce distortion. JVC and Sony both displayed extremely high resolution and very high refresh rate digital projectors that showed no signs of blurring on even fast moving objects. They made me want to scrap my Blu-ray / 1080p home theater until I saw the price tag. Yes, if you have to ask you probably can’t afford it. With the new displays they can accurately show fast moving aircraft from an initial pinpoint on the horizon to a Mach 3 fly by.

The blurring of the lines between the gaming industry, simulation and GIS continued on the ground with numerous ground combat simulators. Avatars are becoming so realistic in motion and detail that they rival video of actual players. Avatars not only move with fluid motion but their movements have built in physics so they behave appropriately when running and jumping with back packs and other loading conditions. Many of the ground simulators work with real geo-referenced data and actual building imagery. Even more impressive are recognizable emotions on the Avatar faces.

One group of tools that has been used to create realistic avatars is motion tracking devices. Even here the bar has been raised. Last year one company demonstrated the ability to make an Avatar move in perfect synchronization to movements of a live actor wearing a suite with sensors that were tracked by computer. This year two companies were displaying the same capability and both were upstaged by a new company, Organic Motion, that did the same avatar mimicking but without wearable sensors. They instead used multiple video cameras and computers to analyze the motion of objects in 3D space and then immediately mimic the motion with avatars.

Organic motion.

A Canon distributor was demonstrating a Canon mixed media set of 3D goggles. This is a significant refinement of an experimental display I saw several years ago at a GIS conference. Those goggles displayed GIS or CAD drawing data overlaid on the real world view. The hard part was maintaining registration of the abstract data with the real world despite head movements. The early version did that by placing a GPS receiver on the head piece to constantly serve as a geo-reference. It was crude but I could imagine that some day construction workers would wear these kinds of goggles to “see” buried cables and piping prior to digging. Obviously GIS data accuracy, integrity and verification would be paramount.

The new Canon mixed media goggles were a significant leap in quality. The resolution and optics were superb. When I put them on I could still see the real world but overlaid in my field of vision were 3D objects that looked like they were actually their. I’m not sure where this will lead but the viewing of GIS data on the real world is certainly now possible.

Canon Mixed Media.

Professor Amela Sadagic and Marine Corps Captain Aaron Burciaga of the Naval Postgraduate School were demonstrating a Virtual Sand Table that combines projected imagery and computer notations onto a table with 3D physical models.

Virtual Sand Table.

Sand Table.

The trainers are not only visually impressive but are providing very realistic tactile feedback. Some are as simple as a video firing range that not only provided a realistic video image but provided a realistic kick back by using a CO2 cartridge within the fake magazine. I tried the Glock 19 and it felt exactly like firing my own gun on a range but without the ammo cost and a more realistic target environment. Even Segways have entered the training and simulation business with Marathon Robotics demonstrating human sized mannequins that can move about a training environment through wireless control. The robots even have on-board intelligence to react to unexpected situations.

Marathon Robotics.

A very gratifying volunteer event in the Exhibit hall was Lockheed Martin’s purchase of cases of personal items needed by our troops in-theater. They set up a “Fill the Box” production line staffed by conference attendees who moved down the line filling a box that was finished with a personal note to a service member. The boxes were sealed and shipped by Lockheed Martin whose motto is “We never forget who we’re working for” and in my personal experience they really mean it. This was a good close to a very interesting conference.

Lockheed Martin.